People v. Shuck

Defendant was convicted by a jury in Genesee County Circuit Court for the crimes of statutory rape 1 and kidnapping. 2 The trial Judge sentenced the defendant to life imprisonment on the rape conviction and 50 to 70 years imprisonment for the offense of kidnapping. This appeal is of right from the trial court’s denial of defendant’s motion for a new trial.

Defendant contends that the trial court committed reversible error by failing to instruct the jury that it could return a verdict of not guilty. The trial judge instructed the jury that, in addition to guilty of kidnapping, it could find the…