People v. Walker
Illinois Court of Appeals
204 N.E.2d 594 (Ill. App. Ct. 1965)
While drinking on a porch with friends, Walker (defendant) and his companions were approached by a stranger, Stenneth, who pulled a knife and attacked them after they declined to gamble with him; during the brief, continuous struggle Stenneth cut Walker, who then knocked Stenneth down with a brick, wrested away the knife, and stabbed him to death. Tried before a judge without a jury, Walker was convicted of murder despite testimony from both Walker and a witness that the fight was continuous and lasted only a few minutes, with the prosecution arguing he had used excessive, unnecessarily prolonged force.
Whether an unpremeditated killing that occurs because the defendant is driven into the heat of irresistible passion by a violent provocation constitutes voluntary manslaughter rather than murder.