State v. Turner

I respectfully dissent. I believe the principal opinion’s construction of §§ 565.-001 — .003, RSMo 1978, ignores their clear, unambiguous language.

Prior to September 28, 1975, the first-degree murder statute, § 559.010, RSMo 1969, included both “common form” first-degree murder and “felony” first-degree murder. After that date, “common form” first-degree murder was separated from “felony” first-degree murder and was designated “capital murder”. Whether this change is viewed as creating one or two distinct new crimes or as merely separating two long-established types of murder, one fact is…