State v. Smith

STILWELL, J.:

Thurman O’Neil Smith, Jr. was tried for murder and possession of a firearm during the commission of a violent crime and convicted of voluntary manslaughter and the weapons charge. He appeals, arguing the evidence did not support either the verdict of voluntary manslaughter or its submission as a verdict option. We reverse.

BACKGROUND

On June 10, 2002, Smith’s 16-year-old daughter told her mother her paternal grandmother’s husband, Tommy Moss, molested her when she was approximately 8 years old. She said the molestation happened at her grandmother’s home while her grandmother was…