State v. Phillips
Annotate this CaseA jury found defendant Mario Phillips guilty of four counts of first-degree murder. The jury also found defendant guilty of first-degree kidnapping, attempted first-degree murder, assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill inflicting serious injury, robbery with a firearm, and first-degree arson. Following a capital sentencing hearing, the jury recommended a sentence of death for each murder conviction. Defendant appealed to the Supreme Court, arguing that (1) the trial court erred in regard to several pretrial matters such as denying defendant's motion to suppress and denying him effective assistance of counsel; (2) the trial court erred in regard to several matters during the trial such as admitting certain testimony and not intervening during the state's closing argument; (3) the trial court erred in regard to certain sentencing proceeding matters such as failing to intervene during the state's closing argument; and (4) the trial court erred in regard to several preservation issues. The Supreme Court overruled each assignment of error. The Court concluded that the defendant received a fair trial and capital sentencing proceeding and that the death sentence imposed by the trial court was not disproportionate to the penalty imposed in similar cases. No error.
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