State v. Marr

Arthur Carroll and Kevin Jackson went to Nathaniel Marr's (defendant's) home to rob it and, in the process, shot and killed Marr's cousin Ronald Muse. Marr later went looking for Carroll and Jackson, allegedly to discuss Muse's murder; when he saw Carroll walking toward a taxi and Carroll grabbed at his waist, Marr fired shots, one of which struck and killed Carroll and another of which hit taxi driver Jimmy Abass. Marr was charged with Carroll's murder and Abass's first-degree assault; he told police he was scared after learning of Muse's death and armed himself to protect himself before approaching Carroll. At trial the jury was instructed on both perfect and imperfect self-defense, but the trial court refused Marr's request for an additional instruction directing jurors to judge reasonableness based on the facts as they appeared to Marr personally at the time. Marr was convicted; an intermediate appellate court found the refusal reversible error, and the state sought further review.