Mullaney v. Wilbur
Mullaney v. Wilbur | |
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Argued January 15, 1975 Decided June 9, 1975 | |
Full case name | Mullaney v. Wilbur |
Citations | 421 U.S. 684 (more) 95 S. Ct. 1881; 44 L. Ed. 2d 508; 1975 U.S. LEXIS 70 |
Case history | |
Prior | On writ of certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit |
Holding | |
The Maine rule does not comport with the requirement of the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment that the prosecution must prove beyond a reasonable doubt every fact necessary to constitute the crime charged. | |
Court membership | |
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Case opinions | |
Majority | Powell, joined by unanimous |
Concurrence | Rehnquist, joined by Burger |
Mullaney v. Wilbur, 421 U.S. 684 (1975), is a
provocation to downgrade a murder conviction to manslaughter.[1]: 17 Previous common law, such as in Commonwealth v. York (1845), allowed such burden on the defense.[1]
: 17
Maine's statuteJustice Powell delivered the opinion for the court that provocation was a crucial part of the charge in that it determined "the degree of culpability attaching to the criminal homicide".[1]: 17
States were able to circumvent this decision by careful wording, as in Patterson v. New York, in which provocation, or "extreme emotional disturbance", was classified as an allowable defense excuse, not as a listed element.[1]: 17
See also
- List of United States Supreme Court cases
- Lists of United States Supreme Court cases by volume
- List of United States Supreme Court cases by the Burger Court
References
- ^ ISBN 978-1-4548-0698-1, [1]
- ^ Mullaney v. Wilbur, vol. 421, June 9, 1975, p. 684, retrieved February 25, 2017
External links
- Text of Mullaney v. Wilbur, 421 U.S. 684 (1975) is available from: Findlaw Justia Library of Congress Oyez (oral argument audio)