Gross v. Texas (Original)
Annotate this CaseAppellant was convicted of murder and sentenced to ten years in prison. Finding the evidence insufficient to support Appellant's conviction for murder under the law of parties, the Fourteenth Court of Appeals reversed the judgment of the trial court and rendered a judgment of acquittal. The State filed a petition for discretionary review arguing that the court of appeals erred in its sufficiency-of-the-evidence review by using a "divide-and-conquer" approach rather than viewing all the evidence collectively and allowing for the jury's ability to draw reasonable inferences. Upon review, the Supreme Court concluded that the appellate court properly determined that the evidence presented against Appellant was insufficient to support his conviction for murder under the law of parties because it was reached by speculation and was not sufficiently based upon facts or evidence. "Even when the evidence is viewed cumulatively, we cannot conclude that a rational jury would find beyond a reasonable doubt that Appellant was involved in a plan to shoot [the victim], either prior to or contemporaneously with the act. Therefore, we affirm the judgment of the court of appeals."
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