Merritt v. Commonwealth
164 Va. 653 · Supreme Court of Virginia · 1935
Facts
Lewis Merritt, on March 25, 1934, pointed a charged and loaded pistol at P. H. Trull, who was within shooting distance. The indictment alleged that Merritt feloniously, willfully, and with malice aforethought pointed the pistol at Trull. The Commonwealth claimed this act constituted an attempt to kill and murder Trull.
Issue
The central legal question is whether an indictment for attempted murder is sufficient if it alleges the malicious pointing of a loaded pistol at a person within range, but does not explicitly state a specific intent to kill.
Holding
The court held that the indictment was insufficient to support a conviction for attempted murder because it failed to allege a specific intent to kill. The judgment of the trial court was reversed, the verdict set aside, and the case remanded.
Rule
An attempt to commit a crime requires two elements: (1) the intent to commit the crime, and (2) a direct, ineffectual act towards its commission. For attempted murder, a specific intent to kill is required, which cannot be inferred solely from the act itself, such as maliciously pointing a loaded pistol. While an indictment for murder may not require an express intent to kill, an indictment for attempted murder must clearly allege this specific intent, as general malevolence or an act that would constitute murder if fatal is insufficient for an attempt. The indictment must set forth both the acts and the specific intent with reasonable particularity.
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