State v. Trail (Signed Opinion)
Annotate this CaseAfter a jury trial, Petitioner was convicted of murder in the first degree. Petitioner was sentenced to life without mercy. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) even if deemed gruesome, the probative value of autopsy and crime scene photographs is greater at the mercy phase of a bifurcated trial than at the guilt phase of such trial; (2) the circuit court in this case did not err in admitting autopsy and crime scene photographs during the mercy phase; (3) the trial court did not abuse its discretion in concluding that alleged jury misconduct did not prejudice Petitioner; (4) the circuit court did gave a proper reading to jury of West Virginia Slayer Statute; (5) the prosecutor did not commit misconduct during the mercy phase closing argument; (6) Petitioner waived her argument regarding the admission into evidence of a summary chart; and (7) there was sufficient evidence to support the jury’s verdict.
Some case metadata and case summaries were written with the help of AI, which can produce inaccuracies. You should read the full case before relying on it for legal research purposes.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.