FACTS: On December 20, 1973, defendant/appellant Charles Goodseal accidentally killed James Warren Hunter when appellant slipped in the snow and a gun he was holding discharged. Appellant had a previous felony conviction; under Kansas law possession of a firearm by a convicted felon is itself a felony.
HISTORY: Defendant was convicted at a first trial of unlawful possession of a firearm (from which no appeal was taken), and was convicted at a second trial of murder in the first degree, done in the commission of a felony. The collateral felony was unlawful possession of a firearm after a felony conviction. Defendant appealed.
ISSUE: Can unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted felon be the basis for felony murder?
RULING: Yes.
HISTORY: Defendant was convicted at a first trial of unlawful possession of a firearm (from which no appeal was taken), and was convicted at a second trial of murder in the first degree, done in the commission of a felony. The collateral felony was unlawful possession of a firearm after a felony conviction. Defendant appealed.
ISSUE: Can unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted felon be the basis for felony murder?
RULING: Yes.