People v. Kline

Defendant, Phillip Kline, was charged with two counts of murder and one count of attempt murder. A jury found him guilty of all three charges, and the court sentenced him to concurrent terms of 50 to 100 years for each murder charge and 10 to 30 years for attempt murder. Defendant contends on appeal that he was not proved guilty beyond a reasonable doubt; that, despite the fact he relied on self-defense, he was not permitted to testify as to his state of mind; that essential defense evidence was erroneously excluded as hearsay; that the prosecutor’s improper closing argument deprived him of a…