State v. Negrete

SCHULTZ, Justice.

Defendant Phillip Negrete appeals from his conviction of first-degree murder following a jury trial. Defendant’s conviction stems from the March 24, 1990, death of a convenience store clerk. On appeal, defendant contends that the trial court erred by refusing to instruct the jury on simple assault as a lesser-included offense of first-degree murder. The State concedes the simple assault instruction should have been given but asserts that the trial court’s refusal to submit the requested instruction was harmless error. We affirm.

Various witnesses testified that Phillip…