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United States v. LaFleur

United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
971 F.2d 200 (1991)

Written by Craig Conway, LLM

Facts

Larry LaFleur and Nick Holm (defendants) approached 82-year-old Otto Bloomquist in a shopping mall parking lot and forced Bloomquist into his own car. LaFleur drove the vehicle to a remote area where he and Holm shot and killed Bloomquist. After defendants were apprehended by the police, each defendant alleged he shot Bloomquist under duress from the other. Defendants were indicted in federal district court for murder and kidnapping, among other crimes. Holm pled guilty to premeditated murder and two other counts were dropped. The district court rejected LaFleur’s request to instruct the jury on duress as a defense to murder. LaFleur appealed.

Rule of Law

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Issue

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Holding and Reasoning (Wiggins, J.)

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A "yes" or "no" answer to the question framed in the issue section;
A summary of the majority or plurality opinion, using the CREAC method; and
The procedural disposition (e.g., reversed and remanded, affirmed, etc.).

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