Opinion ID: 1636806
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 27

Heading: Use of Felony Murder Aggravating Circumstance

Text: The jury returned verdicts finding the Appellant guilty of both premeditated murder and felony murder. The trial court properly merged the verdicts into one count of first-degree murder. At the subsequent sentencing hearing, the State proceeded to the penalty phase intending to prove the felony murder aggravating circumstance, Tenn.Code Ann. § 39-13-204(i)(7). The Appellant's objection was overruled and the State was permitted to use the (i)(7) aggravator. The jury subsequently found the aggravating circumstance applied beyond a reasonable doubt. In Carter v. State, 958 S.W.2d 620, 624 (Tenn.1997), our supreme court approved the use of the felony murder aggravating circumstance to a general verdict of first-degree murder. While acknowledging the decision in Carter v. State, 958 S.W.2d at 624, the Appellant contends that the court erred by permitting the State to rely on the felony murder aggravating circumstance to seek a sentence of death because the use of the (i)(7) factor violates the principles of death-sentencing as outlined by the Tennessee Supreme Court in Middlebrooks .  [13] Essentially, the Appellant invites this court to overrule our supreme court's decision in Carter v. State and adopt the position that the use of the felony murder aggravating circumstance in any case where the defendant is convicted of felony murder is unconstitutional. We decline to do so.