Palmer v. State

DICKSON, Justice.

When a law enforcement officer kills the accomplice of a person committing a kidnapping, does the kidnapper commit felony murder under the Indiana murder statute? We hold that, under these circumstances, the kidnapper commits felony murder.

The defendant, Jesse Palmer, appeals his convictions for the June 24,1993, felony murder1 of Robert Williams (“Williams”), the kidnapping2 and attempted murder3 of Officer James Gehrich (“Gehrich”), and conspiracy to commit escape.4 These crimes stemmed from an incident during which the defendant engaged in kidnapping to aid Williams in…