Rose v. Clark
United States Supreme Court
478 U.S. 570 (1986)
- Written by Sean Carroll, JD
Facts
Charles Browning and Joy Faulk were murdered. Stanley Clark (defendant), Faulk’s ex-boyfriend, was charged with the murders. Clark was charged with first- and second-degree murder. Second-degree murder required a showing of malice. The trial court instructed the jury that there was a presumption that all homicides were malicious absent any evidence to the contrary. The jury in state court found Clark guilty of first-degree murder for the killing of Faulk and second-degree murder for the killing of Browning. The court of appeals affirmed. Clark filed a petition for habeas corpus in federal court in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee. The district court held that the jury instructions improperly shifted the burden of proof on malice and that such burden shifting could never be harmless. The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit affirmed. The United States Supreme Court granted certiorari.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Powell, J.)
Concurrence (Stevens, J.)
Concurrence (Burger, J.)
Dissent (Blackmun, J.)
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