State of Arkansas v. Mauricio A. Torres

Summary

The court denied the State's petition for a writ of certiorari, holding that the circuit court did not exceed its jurisdiction or commit an error apparent on the face of the record by declaring a mistrial covering both the guilt and penalty phases of Torres's capital-murder trial. The court construed the governing statutes to require that the same jury that determined guilt also determine the sentence, and concluded that neither the statutory resentencing exception nor the alternate-juror rule applied to the circumstances presented. The court also rejected the State's argument that Torres forfeited reliance on the same-jury requirement.