Drake v. State

OPINION ON APPELLANT’S PETITION FOR DISCRETIONARY REVIEW

CLINTON, Judge.

In the criminal law jurisprudence of this State a first principle is that in every criminal action tried before a jury the verdict must be “general,” and if the plea is not guilty the jury must find that the accused is either guilty or not guilty; regardless of allegations in a charging instrument, a consequence of a general verdict of “guilty” is a judgment of conviction of but one offense and imposition of but one sentence. Today, we decide whether that principle and its consequence remain valid.

In a three count…