State v. Willis

The opinion of the court was delivered by

Six, J.:

The two primary issues for review concern a defendant’s right to confront a witness who appears at trial by deposition and the appropriate hard 40 sentencing instruction under K.S.A. 1992 Supp. 21-4625(6). We also comment on the admission of photos of the victim, the absence of an instruction on involuntary manslaughter, and the interplay of instructing on mitigating and aggravating factors during a hard 40 sentencing hearing.

Edwin Willis, Jr., was convicted of the premeditated first-degree murder of his wife. K.S.A. 1992 Supp. 21-3401. The…