Opinion ID: 2630302
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Attempted first degree murder

Text: [¶16] The jury found Cohen guilty of attempted first degree murder. Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 6-1-301 defines the crime of attempt and states in pertinent part: (a) A person is guilty of an attempt to commit a crime if: (i) With the intent to commit the crime, he does any act which is a substantial step towards commission of the crime. A substantial step is conduct which is strongly corroborative of the firmness of the person's intention to complete the commission of the crime[.] According to Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 6-2-101(a), [w]hoever purposely and with premeditated malice . . . kills any human being is guilty of murder in the first degree. [¶17] Cohen contends his conviction cannot stand because the evidence is insufficient to support the jury's determination that he engaged in conduct constituting a substantial step toward completing his objective  the first degree murder of Officer Wenberg. According to Cohen, his act of pulling the gun from his waistband was not strongly corroborative of an intention to commit first degree murder. He suggests other possible motives for his act, such as simply attempting to distance himself from the weapon or procure his escape. [¶18] Whether a defendant has engaged in a substantial step toward the commission of a crime is a question of fact. Each case, therefore, must be analyzed within the context of its individual facts and circumstances. [4] Since the jury is the ultimate finder of fact, our only task in this case is to determine whether a quorum of reasonable and rational individuals could have found conduct constituting a substantial step. We have no reservations in upholding the jury's determination given the evidence on this issue. [¶19] Among the evidence considered by the jury was the fact that Cohen was resisting arrest, having already injured one officer, and leading officers on a high speed automobile chase. When finally cornered, he gave false information. Cohen refused to obey Officer Wenberg's instruction to keep his hands in plain sight and, instead, moved his left hand behind his back to retrieve a loaded and ready-to-fire handgun. Even after Officer Trimble pulled his weapon and told Cohen to stop, Cohen continued to pull the weapon out from his waistband and bring it forward, with his hand firmly on the grip. By his own admission, Cohen was trying to get [his] gun cocked so [he] could blow [Officer Wenberg's] fuckin teeth out the back of his head. The only reason Cohen could not complete his intended action of shooting Officer Wenberg was because of Officer Wenberg's prudent actions in grabbing Cohen and dislodging the weapon from his grasp. This evidence is sufficient for a reasonable jury to find that Cohen engaged in substantial conduct strongly corroborative of his intention to murder Officer Wenberg.