Dykes v. State

CHARLES E. ORTH, Jr.,

Judge, Specially Assigned.

The issue on this appeal relates to the duty of a judge presiding at the trial of a criminal cause to instruct the jury. The instructions involved touch on the felony of murder, the mitigating doctrine of self-defense (both perfect and imperfect), the evidence adduced, the authority of the judge, and the function of the jury.

Statement of the Case

Jon Carlton Dykes was found guilty by a jury in the Circuit Court for Somerset County of murder in the second degree. He appealed from the judgment entered on the conviction. The Court of Special Appeals…