Colorado Supreme Court O’Shaughnessy v. People

   Seriously?  Defense attorneys will try anything.  This case is presented more for entertainment value than because it's informative, this may be the stupidest argument ever.

   O'Shaughnessy was convicted of attempted first degree murder with a deadly weapon, attempted aggravated robbery, second degree assault, false imprisonment, reckless endangerment, and received a violent crime sentence enhancer.  All of this is because he approached a woman in a parking lot, held a six inch hunting knife to her face, stabbed her six times, told her she was going to die, and demanded money.  The victim fought back, and told him she didn't have any money, and he ran away.

   So, regarding the crime of attempt, there is an affirmative defense created in statute:

It is an affirmative defense to the crime of criminal attempt that the
defendant abandoned his effort to commit the crime or otherwise prevent
its commission,  under circumstances manifesting the complete and
voluntary renunciation of his criminal intent.

   O'Shaughnessy argued that by walking away (instead of stabbing her again) he was abandoning his effort to commit the crime, and asked that the jury be given instructions regarding this affirmative defense.  The trial court denied his motion, and he appealed his conviction on those grounds.

   The Supreme Court observed statute requires a defendant to present some credible evidence of an affirmative defense in order to be entitled to raise that issue.  O'Shaughnessy failed to present any credible evidence that he had abandoned his criminal intent.  His conviction stands.