Jerry Pennington, Appellant v. the State of Texas, Appellee

Summary

The Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas affirmed the Austin Court of Appeals’ decision that the trial judge properly charged the jury on voluntary manslaughter because the defense’s objection was not a specific, written objection required by Article 36.14, V.A.C.C.P. The majority held that the error was not preserved for review. A dissent argued the majority improperly conducted a de novo review, while a concurrence agreed with the majority’s result.