Donnie Moore v. Al Parke, Warden
Docket: 87-5690
Court: Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit; May 18, 1988; Federal Appellate Court
In the case of Donnie Moore v. Al Parke, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals addressed a habeas corpus petition challenging the sufficiency of the evidence supporting Moore's murder conviction in Kentucky. The indictment specified that Moore and his co-defendant murdered Jack Frye by breaking his neck with a chain. The trial judge instructed the jury that they could convict only if they believed the defendants had committed the act as charged, specifically using a chain. During the appeal, the prosecution conceded that the State needed to prove the murder involved a chain, yet the record lacked evidence confirming this. No chain was found at the scene, and the forensic pathologist, Dr. George R. Nichols, did not establish that a chain was used. He indicated that the cause of death was a ligature compressive injury to the neck, which could have resulted from various causes, including an accident or a crushing injury from a coal dump truck. Dr. Nichols explicitly stated he did not diagnose the use of a chain in the death of the victim. The court found that the absence of evidence regarding the use of a chain meant no rational jury could have convicted the defendants based on the established standards of sufficiency of evidence from Jackson v. Virginia. The court determined that the evidence presented was insufficient for a rational jury to conclude, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the defendants murdered the victim with a chain around the neck, as required by the prosecution's theory. The court found this theory to be speculative and lacking a factual basis consistent with the standards set forth in *Jackson v. Virginia*. As a result, the judgment of the District Court was reversed, and a Writ of Habeas Corpus was issued, mandating the immediate release of the defendants. Chief Judge Engel dissenting noted that the sufficiency of the evidence was a close call, asserting that a rational jury could potentially find the murder elements established based on the evidence viewed favorably for the prosecution. Engel emphasized that all judges on the panel had thoroughly reviewed the record.