People v. Wilhoite

Following a trial without a jury, defendant Deborah Wilhoite was found guilty of the attempted murder of her nine-year-old daughter. The court sentenced her to a term of 10 years in prison. On appeal, defendant contends that she proved by a preponderance of the evidence that she was insane at the time of the offense and that the State failed to prove specific intent beyond a reasonable doubt.

At trial, the State presented all of its evidence by way of stipulation. The parties agreed that if defendant’s nine-year-old daughter, Tiffany Wilhoite, were called to testify, she would state that on…