Court Opinion

ID: 9665389
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-24 00:47:03.823266+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:15:15.268943
License: Public Domain

KAPLAN, Justice,
concurring.
I would hold that the court’s charge which labeled voluntary manslaughter as a “lesser included offense” of murder was erroneous. I concur in the result reached by the majority only because this error was harmless under the circumstances presented in this case.
Appellant contends that the trial court erred in instructing the jury that voluntary manslaughter was a “lesser included offense” of murder. Appellant argues that the language “lesser included offense” comments on the weight of the evidence and invites the jury to speculate on the range of punishment during the guilt/innocence phase of the trial. I agree.
It is proper for a trial court to charge the jury on the general law applicable to the offense charged and make a direct and pertinent application of the law to the facts in the case. Rogers v. State, 687 S.W.2d 337, 344 (Tex.Crim.App.1985). In my view, however, it is improper for the court to characterize or label an offense as a “lesser included offense.” This instruction is tantamount to informing the jury that one offense is less serious than another and has a lesser range of punishment. See, e.g., McClure v. State, 544 S.W.2d 390, 393 (Tex.Crim.App.1976). Thus, the jury is encouraged to reach a decision based on the consequences attached to a particular offense rather than the elements of the offense.1
The majority’s reliance on Teal is misplaced. The issue in Teal was whether aggravated assault is a lesser included offense of voluntary manslaughter. Teal v. State, 543 S.W.2d 371, 372-73 (Tex.Crim.App.1976), overruled on other grounds, Flanagan v. State, 675 S.W.2d 734, 742 (Tex.Crim.App.1982) (op. on reh’g). The *42Court of Criminal Appeals never addressed the specific language used in the jury charge. In the instant case, the issue is not whether voluntary manslaughter is a lesser included offense of murder — it is. The issue is whether the trial court erred by labeling voluntary manslaughter as a “lesser included offense” in the jury charge. I fail to see how the holding in Teal is dispositive of this issue.
I would hold that the trial court erred in instructing the jury that voluntary manslaughter is a “lesser included offense” of murder. However, I agree with the majority that this error was harmless in light of the entire jury charge, the state of the evidence, the argument of counsel, and the record as a whole. Posey v. State, No. 05-91-00597-CR, slip op. at 13-14 (Tex.App.—Dallas, July 30, 1992); Almanza v. State, 686 S.W.2d 157, 171 (Tex.Crim.App.1985).

. It is significant that the pattern jury charge does not include the language "lesser included offense” when both murder and voluntary manslaughter are raised by the evidence. P. McClung, Jury Charges for Texas Criminal Practice, p. 52 (rev. ed. 1992). I would strongly encourage the trial courts to follow the recommended language of this pattern jury charge.