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Martin v. State

The defendant returned to the scene of an earlier altercation with the victim, attacked him and killed him with a knife.

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James Martin appeals from his convictions for felony murder and possession of a knife during the commission of a crime.1 Martin claims that the trial court erred in admitting his statements to police and other evidence obtained before he was read his Miranda rights.2 Because this evidence was properly admitted under the “public safety” exception to Miranda , we affirm. 1. The evidence at trial showed that at around 1:00 a.m. on December 9, 2000, Martin was at the house of his neighbor, Deneen Johnson, drinking brandy and smoking crack cocaine. The victim, Christopher Allen, showed up about two hours later and got into an argument and fist-fight with Martin over a debt. After Johnson and her brother broke up the fight, Johnson told Martin to leave. Martin went to his house, got a knife, returned to Johnson’s house, and attacked Allen. Allen died of stab wounds.

After reviewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the jury’s determination of guilt, we conclude that a rational trier of fact could have found beyond a reasonable doubt that Martin was guilty of the crimes for which he was convicted.3

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