State v. Kenna

At approximately 11:55 p.m. on November 17, 1975, Joseph Miller was shot at close range in the abdomen with a high powered rifle. Between the time of the shooting and the time he underwent surgery about an hour later, the victim told several people that the defendant, John E. Kenna, had shot him. Mr. Miller never regained consciousness after surgery and died about twenty-four hours later.

The state’s evidence against the defendant consists primarily of the testimony of the people to whom the victim spoke between the time of the shooting and his death. At the defendant’s trial for first degree…