[DOWNLOAD] "Goff v. State" by Texas Court of Criminal Appeals * eBook PDF Kindle ePub Free
eBook details
- Title: Goff v. State
- Author : Texas Court of Criminal Appeals
- Release Date : January 22, 1996
- Genre: Law,Books,Professional & Technical,
- Pages : * pages
- Size : 44 KB
Description
Appeal from TARRANT County CONCURRING OPINION I concur in the result reached by the Court that appellant's conviction be affirmed. For the reasons advanced in Ford v. State, ___ S.W.2d ___ (Tex.Cr.App. No. 71,760, delivered February 21, 1996) and the following reasons, I write to distinguish my beliefs. In Ford, supra, slip op. at 7-15, this Court for the first time approved the admissibility of so-called ""victim impact"" evidence at the punishment stage of a capital murder trial. We determined that what was critical in the determination of admissibility of such evidence was its relevance as to the special issues which the sentencing jury is required to answer per Articles 37.071 and 37.0711, V.A.C.C.P., and within the confines of our rules governing evidence admissibility, particularly Tex.R.Crim.Evid. 401, 402 and 403. Thus the principal concern regarding the admissibility of victim impact evidence at the punishment stage of a capital murder trial is its relevancy regarding the special issues which the sentencing jury is required to answer. If the trial court can conclude that evidence regarding the impact of the murder on the victim's family is relevant to the jury's decision in answering the statutory special issues, and that its probative value is not substantially outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice, confusion of the issues, misleading of the jury, undue delay, or needless cumulation of evidence, then such evidence would be admissible under the rules of evidence. Tex.R.Crim.Evid. 401, 402 and 403. Thus any and all evidence of the impact upon a victim is not necessarily admissible; such must be relevant to the statutory special issues within the parameters of the our evidentiary rules.