Newton Independent
The Iowa Supreme Court today upheld the first degree murder conviction of Mark Becker, the Parkersburg man who walked into a high school weight room in June 2009 and shot and killed long-time football coach Ed Thomas in front of numerous students participating in summer workouts.
Becker appealed his conviction claiming the district court erred in refusing to give his proposed instruction defining the elements of the insanity defense and that the district court erred when it refused to instruct the jury of the consequences of a verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity.
The Supreme Court rejected both arguments and affirmed the decision of Iowa Court of Appeals and the Iowa District Court for Butler County. The 56-page ruling can be read here.
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