State v. Barnett
South Carolina Supreme Court
63 S.E.2d 57 (1951)
- Written by Angela Patrick, JD
Facts
Barnett (defendant) was driving a vehicle when he unintentionally killed someone. Barnett was charged with the crime of involuntary manslaughter. At trial, the court instructed the jury that Barnett was guilty of involuntary manslaughter if he operated the vehicle in a lawful but negligent manner. For determining whether Barnett negligently operated the vehicle and committed the crime of manslaughter, the jury was given the definition of only ordinary negligence, with no mention of gross negligence or recklessness. The jury convicted Barnett of involuntary manslaughter. On appeal, Barnett argued that the jury instructions were legally incorrect because a person’s negligence could be criminal only if the person acted with a higher degree of wrongfulness than ordinary negligence, such as gross negligence or recklessness.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Oxner, J.)
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