Opinion ID: 1567693
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Covered Fairly Elsewhere

Text: ¶ 30. Spires's proffered jury instruction stated: The Court instructs the jury that a person claiming the right of self-defense is not required to retreat or to consider whether he could safely retreat. If he is honestly and reasonably in fear of death or serious bodily harm he may stand his ground and use whatever force necessary under the circumstances, even to the extent of taking the life of the attacker. We hold that, although no other jury instruction specifically used the words stand your ground, they certainly fairly covered Spires's right to self-defense. ¶ 31. Instruction S-101 stated: The Court instructs the Jury that to make a killing justifiable on the grounds of self-defense, the danger to the Defendant must be either actual, present and urgent, or the Defendant must have reasonable grounds to apprehend a design on the part of the victim to kill him or to do him some great bodily harm, and in addition to this he must have reasonable grounds to apprehend that there is imminent danger of such design being accomplished. It is for the jury to determine the reasonableness of the ground upon which the Defendant acts. ¶ 32. Instruction S-102A stated: The Court instructs the Jury that a person may not use more force than reasonably appears necessary to save his life or protect himself from great bodily harm. The question of whether he was justified in using the weapon is for determination by the jury. The law tolerates no justification and accepts no excuse for an assault with a deadly weapon on a plea of self-defense except when the assault by the Defendant on the victim was necessary or apparently so to protect the Defendant's own life or his person from great bodily injury and there was imminent danger of such design being accomplished. The danger to life or of great personal injury must be or reasonably appear to be imminent and present at the time the Defendant commits the assault with a deadly weapon. The term apparent as used in apparent danger means such overt, actual demonstration by conduct and acts of a design to take life or do some great personal injury as would make the Capital Murder apparently necessary to self preservation or to escape great bodily harm. ¶ 33. Instruction D-6A stated: The Court instructs the jury that every killing of a human being is not a crime, and that it is not incumbent upon the Defendant, Joel Scott Spires, to prove conclusively that he acted in self-defense. All that is necessary for the Defendant, Joel Scott Spires, to prove in order to establish self-defense, is that at the time of death of Rodney Wade Saucier, the Defendant, Joel Scott Spires, had reasonable grounds to apprehend danger to his life or great bodily harm on account of the actions of Rodney Wade Saucier and if you, the jury find that the Defendant, Joel Scott Spires, had reasonable grounds to apprehend danger to his life or great bodily harm on account of the actions of Rodney Wade Saucier and that the Defendant, Joel Scott Spires, acted in self-defense, then you, the jury shall find Joel Scott Spires, Not Guilty. ¶ 34. Instruction D-9A stated: The Court instructs the jury that the Defendant, Joel Scott Spires, was entitled to act upon appearances. If the conduct of Rodney Wade Saucier was such as to induce in the mind of a reasonable person a fear that death or great bodily harm was about to be inflicted by Rodney Wade Saucier on Joel Scott Spires, situated as was the Defendant, Joel Scott Spires, under all the circumstances then existing, and viewed from the standpoint of the Defendant, Joel Scott Spires, then it does not matter if there was no such danger. If you the jury believe that the Defendant, Joel Scott Spires, acted in self-defense from the real and honest conviction that he was in danger or death or great bodily harm, then you, the jury, shall find the Defendant, Joel Scott Spires, Not Guilty, even though you, the jury, believe that at the time Joel Scott Spires was mistaken and was not in any great danger. ¶ 35. We find that these instructions fairly covered Spires's right to stand and fight if he reasonably believed that he was in danger of death or great bodily harm. Thus, we hold that the trial judge did not err when he refused Spires's additional stand-your-ground instruction.