State v. Poole

The question which prompted our allowance of the motion for leave to appeal in this first degree murder case is whether defendant’s contention that the killing was an accident is an affirmative defense, requiring the defendant to establish it by a preponderance of the evidence.

This court has consistently recognized that there are certain “justification[s] for admitted conduct”1 allowed to a defendant in a criminal case, provable for the most part under the plea of not guilty, which are referred to as ‘ ‘ affirmative defenses. ’ ’ As characterized by one authority, they represent not a mere…