People v. Neal

Defendant appeals his conviction for the murder of his wife. His sole contention on appeal is that the trial court committed reversible error in refusing to give his tendered instructions on voluntary manslaughter. The facts necessary to a determination of this question are as follows.

In August 1980 defendant and his wife, Karren, were married. It was a second marriage for both, and each had two children from the prior marriage. Defendant’s children lived with his former wife, from whom he had obtained a bitter divorce in fall 1979, and Karren’s 19-year-old daughter Kandy had lived with them…