Berry v. State

Berry’s petition for post-conviction relief.was. denied by the trial court. Before his robbery conviction, he had entered a special plea of insanity. His plea averred that he had suffered from chronic alcoholism and emotional instability at the time of the robbery. The State offered observational evidence of Berry’s demeanor during and after the robbery. In the opinion of court-appointed medical experts, Berry was “legally sane” when the robbery was committed. The trial court gave the jury the following instruction:

“The law presumes that a man is of sound mind until there is some evidence to…