State v. Courchesne

Courchesne (defendant) fatally stabbed a pregnant woman, whose child was delivered alive but died 42 days later. He was convicted of a capital felony for murdering two people in a single transaction, and the State (plaintiff) sought the death penalty, which required proving an aggravating factor that at least one of the killings was especially heinous, cruel, or depraved. Courchesne argued the statute required the State to prove both killings met that standard, and the trial court agreed and rejected the State's single-killing reading; the State appealed.