Opinion ID: 1058212
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Second Degree Murder Presumption

Text: The State challenges the legal presumption that a homicide is second degree murder. This is a question of law; therefore, our review is de novo without a presumption of correctness. State v. Yoreck, 133 S.W.3d 606, 609 (Tenn.2004).
In this appeal, the State contends that the presumption in favor of second degree murder relied upon by the Court of Criminal Appeals in reversing the defendant's first degree murder conviction is outmoded and should be abandoned. The State insists that under the 1989 revision of the statutes, proof of a homicide does not necessarily place the offense within any of the six defined categories of homicide. The presumption that a homicide is second degree murder is based on common law and was codified in Tennessee Code Annotated section 39-2-211(a) (1988). Once a killing was established, the law presumed it was murder in the second degree. Witt v. State, 46 Tenn. 5, 8 (Tenn. 1868) (overruled on other grounds). In order to raise the killing to first degree murder, the State was required to prove premeditation. State v. Bullington, 532 S.W.2d 556, 560 (Tenn.1976). In Tennessee, under the pre-1989 statute, which is similar to the current statute, only two categories of murder existed  murder in the first degree and murder in the second degree. See Tenn.Code Ann. § 39-2-202(a) (1988) (defining first degree murder); Tenn.Code Ann. § 39-2-211(a) (1988) (stating that all other kinds of murder shall be deemed murder in the second degree). The codified presumption of second degree murder has since been repealed. Acts 1989, ch. 591, section 1. In 1989, the legislature revised the criminal statutes, abolishing all common law offenses and replacing them with statutory offenses. Tenn.Code Ann. § 39-11-102, Sentencing Comm'n Comments. In so doing, the new statutory offense of criminal homicide was established. See Tenn.Code Ann. § 39-13-201 (2003). Criminal homicide currently includes the following six categories: first degree murder, second degree murder, voluntary manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, vehicular homicide, and reckless homicide. See Tenn.Code Ann. §§ 39-13-202, -210, -211, -212, -213, and -215 (2003). Based on the current statutory scheme, no presumption is engaged to place a killing within any of the categories of criminal homicide. Rather, in order to convict a defendant of any of the categories of criminal homicide, the State must prove each element of the offense beyond a reasonable doubt. Tenn.Code Ann. § 39-11-201 (2003). Under the current statutory scheme, the presumption is no longer applicable and is, therefore, obsolete. We note that the perceived vitality of the second degree murder presumption after the revision of the criminal code appears to have been generated from this Court's opinion in State v. Brown, 836 S.W.2d 530 (Tenn.1992). There, the Court stated, The law in Tennessee has long recognized that once the homicide has been established, it is presumed to be murder in the second degree. Id. at 543. Although Brown was decided in 1992, the homicide occurred in 1986, prior to the revision of the criminal statutes that resulted in the creation of six categories of criminal homicide. Thus, at the time of the offense in Brown , the only categories of murder were first degree and second degree. Therefore, the second degree murder presumption was properly applied in Brown . However, those cases following Brown in which the alleged offenses occurred after the statutory revision in 1989 apparently misapplied Brown , in that those cases should have been analyzed under the amended statutes. [3] In addition to the foregoing, we note that the presumption is superfluous. An instruction on the elements of the charged offense is sufficient to inform the jury of the law. When a trial court omits the language of presumption but otherwise clearly informs the jury that the State carries the burden of proving each and every element of first degree premeditated murder beyond a reasonable doubt and also includes a correct and complete instruction on second degree murder, a criminal defendant is not entitled to relief. State v. Coulter, 67 S.W.3d 3, 68 (Tenn. Crim.App.2001). The jury is instructed that in order to convict it must find the existence of each and every element of the offense beyond a reasonable doubt. An additional instruction regarding the second degree murder presumption then becomes inaccurate, misleading, and, at once, confusing. In this context, we recognize also that application of the second degree murder presumption may invite error. Thus, we conclude that removing the second degree murder presumption will help clarify the law and avoid confusion. Accordingly, today we abandon the second degree murder presumption. We emphasize, however, that this Court's abandonment of the second degree murder presumption is not a new constitutional rule which must be given retroactive application. A rule that merely restates or reemphasizes pre-existing state law is not one that is new. Momon v. State, 18 S.W.3d 152 (Tenn.2000). The burden on the State to prove each element of a crime beyond a reasonable doubt has long been recognized by statute, case law, and constitutional provision. [4] See Id. This decision merely clarifies the law regarding the second degree murder presumption.