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No. 123553-56
| People of the State of Michigan, |
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Olga Agnello
(313) 224-5787 |
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Plaintiff-Appellant, |
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(Appeal from Ct of Appeals) |
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(Wayne -- Drake, D.) |
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| Nicholas E. Holtschlag, |
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David R. Cripps
(313) 963-0210 |
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Defendant-Appellee. |
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People of the State of Michigan, |
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Plaintiff-Appellant, |
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| vs (Appeal from Ct of Appeals) |
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| (Wayne - Drake, M.) |
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| Joshua M. Cole, |
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Richard B. Ginsberg (734) 213-0918 |
Defendant-Appellee. |
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People of the State of Michigan, |
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| Plaintiff-Appellant, |
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vs (Appeal from Ct of Appeals) |
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(Wayne - Drake, M.) |
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| Daniel Brayman, |
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Gary L. Rogers (313) 256-9833 |
Defendant-Appellee. |
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People of the State of Michigan, |
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Plaintiff-Appellant, |
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vs (Appeal from Ct of Appeals) |
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| (Wayne - Drake, M.) |
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Erick Limmer, |
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Defendant-Appellee. |
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Click to view briefs in Adobe format:
Plaintiff-Appellant's Brief on Appeal>>
Defendant-Appellee Nicholas Holtschlag's Brief on Appeal>>
Defendant-Appellee Joshua M. Cole's Brief on Appeal>>
Defendant-Appellee Daniel Brayman's Brief on Appeal>>
Background:
During the night of Saturday, January 16, 1999, three of the defendants, Joshua Cole (18 years old), Daniel Brayman (18 years old), and Nicholas Holtschlag (17 years old), were watching television, drinking, and smoking marijuana with three 14-year-old girls - Samantha Reid, Melanie Sindone, and Jessica VanWassehnova. The group spent the evening at the home of the fourth defendant, Erick Limmer (25 years old). At least one of the four defendants liberally dosed the girls' drinks with GHB, known as the "date-rape drug" or with its counterpart GBL. Reid died as a result, while Sindone slipped into a coma but recovered after receiving medical treatment. After a five-week jury trial in Wayne County Circuit Court, Brayman and Holtschlag were convicted of involuntary manslaughter and two counts of the lesser included offense of mixing a harmful substance in a drink. Cole was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and two counts of mixing a harmful substance in a drink. Limmer was convicted of accessory after the fact to manslaughter, mixing a harmful substance in a drink, delivery/manufacture of marijuana, and possession of GHB. All four defendants appealed their convictions. In an unpublished per curiam opinion, the Court of Appeals reversed the manslaughter convictions, as well as Limmer's conviction as an accessory after the fact. The Court of Appeals held that the evidence was legally insufficient. Because defendants were convicted of mixing a harmful substance -- an unlawful act and felony -- they could not be convicted of involuntary manslaughter under a gross negligence theory, which required evidence of a lawful act committed in a grossly negligent fashion. The Court of Appeals affirmed all other convictions.
The prosecutor appeals, asking the Supreme Court to reinstate the manslaughter and accessory after the fact convictions. In its brief, the prosecution argues that "the prosecution need not show that the act that caused death was unlawful in itself, but is not defeated if in fact the proofs show that the act that caused death, which was committed in a grossly negligent manner, was itself unlawful (even felonious)."
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