State v. Jennings

The opinion of the court was delivered by

Herd, J.:

This is a criminal action wherein the appellant, James “Pookie” Jennings, pled nolo contendere and was found guilty of one count of second-degree murder. The crime arose out of these facts:

On the evening of June 14, 1985, Jennings and another man, Richard G. Nichols, had an argument in the parking lot of an east Topeka liquor store. Jennings threateningly told Nichols he was going to kill him and left the parking lot, only to return fifteen minutes later with a sawed-off shotgun. Thereafter, upon the exchange of angry words, Jennings shot…