State v. Sims

Paul Sims (defendant) and two others broke into the Schmidt family's home carrying a shotgun during early-morning hours; Oscar Schmidt shot Sims in the arm during the break-in, and Sims then fired the shotgun, killing Oscar's son Walter. Sims claimed being shot caused an involuntary muscle spasm in his trigger finger, and a neurologist's deposition testimony supported that this was medically possible. The State of West Virginia (plaintiff) charged Sims with first-degree murder under the felony-murder rule for a killing during a burglary; the trial court ruled in limine that the involuntary-spasm theory, even if true, was not a defense to felony murder, and Sims then pleaded guilty and later appealed, challenging his plea as involuntary because of that ruling.