State v. Hayes

SMITH, Judge.

By her first assignment of error, defendant contends the trial court erred in refusing to instruct the jury on self-defense. We agree. Defendant’s plea of not guilty to the felony of second degree murder entitled her to offer evidence that the killing was committed in self-defense, by accident or both; no election was required. State v. Wagoner, 249 N.C. 637, 107 S.E. 2d 83 (1959); State v. Adams, 2 N.C. App. 282, 163 S.E. 2d 1 (1968).

In this case, the State’s evidence tends to show the killing was intentional while defendant’s evidence tends to show that although defendant…