State v. Clark

McGRAW, Justice:

Nina'Johnson Clark appeals from a conviction of first-degree murder rendered against her in the Circuit Court of Kana-wha County. She contends that the trial court committed reversible error by giving an improper self-defense instruction.

I

The appellant was charged with shooting John C. Wood to death June 20, 1980, at her trailer in St. Albans. Although Wood was married at the time of his death, it was claimed that he and the appellant had been lovers for eight years. The appellant was 63-years-old when the shooting occurred, weighed about 75-80 pounds and stood five feet tall.…