Tennessee Criminal Lawyer Blog

The language enacting the aforementioned offense states that it is appropriate to charge second-degree murder where there is:

A killing of another that results from the unlawful distribution of any Schedule I or Schedule II drug, when the drug is the proximate cause of the death of the user.

Commonly known schedule I and II drugs include heroin, codeine, morphine, oxycodone, and cocaine. Schedule I and II drugs are classified as such because there is a high potential for the drugs so classified to be abused and there is little to no acceptable medical use of the drugs known in the scientific communities. Such drugs are thought to be the most dangerous illegal drugs known in the community, which undoubtedly played a large role in the legislature's decision to include the distribution of such drugs in the second-degree murder framework.

While the spirit behind this statute is hard to question, it presents problems of proof as far as criminal trials are concerned. For a defendant to be convicted under this statute, it will have to be proven beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant distributed a schedule I or II drug that was the proximate cause of the death of the user. This may prove difficult if the individual sold the drug in question to the deceased user a long time before that individual eventually succumbed to the effects of the drug or if another individual sold the same drug to the user in the interim. As it reads, this statute would effectively enable every person who ever sold the drug in question to the deceased individual to be held liable for second-degree murder.

This statute also presents issues at trial for the defendant, as the prosecution will undoubtedly be able to introduce evidence that the defendant is a drug dealer if such evidence exists, making it much more likely that the jury will be prejudiced against the defendant and will be likely to convict them of something based on that fact alone. Therefore, it is critical that such defendants have the assistance of experienced criminal defense counsel who can ensure that inappropriate evidence is excluded from trial and that the defendant is afforded a fair and impartial jury. Defendants in Knox, Sevier, Jefferson, Greene, Hamblen, Sullivan, and surrounding counties should contact an East Tennessee criminal defense attorney to discuss their case.