Mendoza v. State

OPINION

Opinion By

Justice FITZGERALD.

Appellant Roman Jesse Mendoza was indicted for murder and relied on the defense of self-defense. The jury convicted him, and he appeals. We hold that the trial judge erred by instructing the jury on the doctrine of “provoking the difficulty,” and accordingly we reverse appellant’s conviction and remand the case for further proceedings.

I. Background

A. Summary

On a Saturday night in October 2007, appellant, his brother Vincent Mendoza, and Juan Arturo Muro were socializing with Jorge Hernandez at Hernandez’s house in Kaufman, Texas. All four men were drinking…