Smith v. State

Hunstein, Justice.

Appellant Courtland Smith was convicted of felony murder and related offenses in connection with the March 10, 2009 death of two-year-old Jaydon Patton. Smith now appeals his convictions and sentences on the ground that his pre-arrest statement to investigators should not have been admitted at trial. Though we find no error in the verdicts, we do find that the trial court erred in sentencing Smith on one count that should have merged with the murder count, and we therefore vacate that portion of Smith’s sentence.

Viewed in the light most favorable to the jury’s verdicts, the…