United States v. Merrit
United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
961 F.3d 1105 (2020)
- Written by Jamie Milne, JD
Facts
In August 2016, Timothy Merritt (defendant) was driving in the wrong lane while intoxicated and struck another vehicle, killing a person. At Merritt’s trial for second-degree murder, the government offered evidence of three other drunk-driving incidents: (1) Merritt’s 2012 arrest for drunk driving after he drove into oncoming traffic, (2) Merritt’s 2014 arrest for obvious intoxication while entering his car at a gas station, and (3) Merritt’s November 2016 arrest for intoxicated speeding and drifting while on pretrial release before the murder trial. The government offered the prior-arrest evidence to prove the malice aforethought required for second-degree murder, positing that the arrests showed Merritt was aware of drunk-driving risks. Regarding the November 2016 arrest, the government argued that, under the doctrine of chances, it showed it was unlikely Merritt had an innocent mental state during the August 2016 incident. After a jury convicted Merritt of second-degree murder, he appealed, arguing that the district court’s admission of evidence concerning his other arrests violated Federal Rule of Evidence 404(b).
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Eid, J.)
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