The People of the State of New York V John C. Mitchell

Question: Describe about the procedural history in the case of The People of the State of New York V John C. Mitchel? Answer: Procedural History The procedural history in the case of The People of the State of New York V John C. Mitchell has been that the defendant had been convicted for committing second degree murder during the jury trial as he had stabbed a prostitute to death. The defendant had claimed that the conviction should be reversed since the conviction was based on the privileged statements which were solicited improperly by a police guard. The trial court had held that the statements made by the defendant were not privileged and the Appellate court had also affirmed the statement. Facts The facts state that the defendant who was a resident of Waterloo, New York was previously indicted for causing the death of his girlfriend. He had met the victim in a hotel bar and they had later seen moving towards the defendants room. The next afternoon the victims body was found in the defendants hotel room and showed that she had been stabbed a number of times. The defendant was not seen leaving the room that morning. Issue or Issues The primary issue in the case as stated by the court was the identification of the murderer of the victim. Answer Yes. The Court affirmed the decision of the Appellate Division. Reason With regard to the decision of the court the reason given was that the intention of the accused was not the issue in the case and that the error was not adequate to reverse the decision of the conviction of the defendant. Further the court also stated that the obvious and possible result of the act committed by the person should have been presumed. Reference The PEOPLE of the State of New York, v. John C. MITCHELL, 58 N.Y.2d 368 (Court of Appeals of New York 1983).