State of Arizona, Appellee v. Andre Michael Leteve, Appellant

Summary

The Arizona Supreme Court affirmed Leteve’s convictions and death sentences for murdering his two sons. It held that his unwarned statements were admissible under the public-safety exception, and that most challenged evidence rulings, the penalty-phase rulings, the aggravating-circumstance findings, the death sentences, and the restitution order were proper; several evidentiary and instructional errors were harmless. The court also held that evidence of the murders’ impact on nonfamily members may be admitted when necessary to inform the jury of the crime’s specific harm, but should generally be limited.