State v. Yates case brief

State v. Yates case brief summary
310 S.E.2d 805 (1982)

CASE SYNOPSIS

Defendant filed an appeal from a judgment from the Greenville County Court (South Carolina), which convicted him of murder, armed robbery, assault and battery with intent to kill, and conspiracy in the State's case against him, and sentenced him to death by electrocution.

CASE FACTS
Defendant was convicted of murder, armed robbery, assault and battery with intent to kill, and conspiracy by the trial court, and sentenced to death. Defendant appealed.

DISCUSSION

• In affirming the trial court's judgment, the court, after considering all the exceptions filed and the entire record found that the trial court did not commit prejudicial error. 
• The court concluded that the totality of the evidence supported the trial judge's finding that the imposition of the death penalty was warranted. 
• The court determined that defendant had the benefit of giving every possible reasonable explanation for his actions and that the trial court's sentence was entered without prejudice and was not excessive or disproportionate given the crime committed. 
• The court also stated that the jury correctly found that the robbery while defendant was armed with a deadly weapon, was an aggravating circumstance and that the finding was not made under the influence of passion, prejudice, or any other arbitrary factor. 
• The court noted that the trial judge instructed the jury on all available mitigating circumstances and directed them to consider any other factors in mitigation that defendant presented.

CONCLUSION
The court affirmed the trial court's judgment.

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