What are the elements of a rational trier of fact for a defendant to have found him guilty of first degree murder?
California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from People v. Proctor, 15 Cal.Rptr.2d 340, 4 Cal.4th 499, 842 P.2d 1100 (Cal. 1992):
Having reviewed the entire record in the light most favorable to the judgment and presuming the existence of every fact the trier of fact reasonably could have deduced from the evidence, we conclude that a rational trier of fact could have found beyond a reasonable doubt the essential elements of defendant's guilt under each of these theories of first degree murder. (People v. Pensinger (1991) 52 Cal.3d 1210, 1237, 278
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a. Premeditation and deliberation.
In a case, such as the present one, based upon circumstantial evidence, we must decide whether the circumstances reasonably justify the [4 Cal.4th 529] findings of the trier of fact, but our opinion that the circumstances also might reasonably be reconciled with a contrary finding would not warrant reversal of the judgment. (People v. Perez (1992) 2 Cal.4th 1117, 1124, 9 Cal.Rptr.2d 577, 831 P.2d 1159.)
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