Ex Parte Weems

463 So. 2d 170 (1984)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

D had been at a 'gambling house' where he had won about $160.00. He purchased two cartons of cigarettes. When he left, he encountered a man outside the house who asked him for a pack of cigarettes. When D refused the man slapped him and attempted to cut him with a knife. D fled on foot. D returned later to retrieve his mother's car which he had been driving. He discovered that he had lost the car keys during the fight. D decided to go into the East North Cafe to ask if anyone had found them. D decided to take the gun which his mother kept in the car glove box just in case the assailant was there. D determined the man was not there. He noticed that a friend Christine Wilson was there and he went over, to talk to her. D realized that he still had the pistol in his hand. While he was in the process of putting the pistol away, it discharged and hit Wilson and she eventually died. There was no dispute that it was a tragic accident. D was convicted of murder and appealed and the appeals court affirmed. The Court of Criminal Appeals concluded that, although D may not have intended to shoot Wilson, there was evidence to support a finding that he had intended to shoot Sylvester Goodson, the man sitting at the table with the victim. The court concluded that it was unlikely that Weems was attempting to place the gun under his belt since the trajectory of the bullet was parallel to the ground and that Goodson must have been the intended target because the bullet was traveling toward him. D appealed.