Fitts v. State

OPINION

TAFT, Justice.

A jury convicted appellant of (1) capital murder by arson, (2) capital murder for remuneration, and (3) arson. 1 The trial court assessed punishment at three life sentences to be served concurrently. We address two issues of first impression in Texas: (1) the proper remedy for error in twice convicting and sentencing appellant for capital murder of the same decedent; and (2) the admissibility of “alerts” made by trained hydrocarbon-sniffing dogs utilized at appellant’s home. We also decide (1) whether misspelling “remuneration” rendered the indictment fundamentally…