CHARLES CLAS SECURES JURY ACQUITTAL IN FIRST-DEGREE MURDER CASE (STEARNS COUNTY/ST. CLOUD)
Charles Clas’s client was charged by a grand jury indictment in July of 2021 and faced two counts of aiding and abetting first-degree premeditated murder and two counts of aiding and abetting second-degree intentional murder in St. Cloud, Minnesota (Stearns County). Three others were charged by a grand jury indictment for their involvement, and all are still facing the same or similar charges. One co-defendant had petitioned to plead guilty to aiding and abetting after the fact and is still awaiting a sentencing date. Another co-defendant is awaiting jury trial in April of this year. The last co-defendant has yet to be set for trial and has not plead guilty to any of the charges.
Clas filed a motion to dismiss the indictment in December of 2021. In early February 2023 the State agreed to dismiss one count of first-degree murder and one count of second-degree murder, but then noticed its intent to seek an aggravated sentence (above the guidelines sentence) if Clas’s client was convicted following a trial.
On February 21st Clas appeared in Stearns County as jury trial proceedings began. Jury selection accounted for the first 3 days and the evidence portion of the trial totaled 3 more days. In the late evening of March 2, 2023, the verdict was announced. Clas’s client was found NOT GUILTY on all remaining counts: Not guilty of aiding and abetting murder in the first-degree and not guilty of aiding and abetting murder in the second-degree.
First-degree murder is one of the most consequential crimes that can be committed. It carries the stiffest sentence that may be imposed under Minnesota law. The crime requires proof of premeditation to cause the death of a person. Second-degree murder requires intent to kill regardless of whether the crime involved premeditation. A person charged with aiding and abetting any criminal act is as liable for the crime committed by another person if it can be proved they had intentionally aided, advised, hired, counseled, or conspired with or procured the other to commit the crime.
The sentencing guidelines for aiding and abetting remain the same as committing the act of murder in this instance. Here, the state sought an even more stringent penalty than contemplated by the sentencing guidelines, filing notice of its intent to seek an aggravated sentencing departure given Blakely v. Washington, 541 U.S. 296 (2004). Under Blakely, the court can impose a greater sentence than the standard maximum guidelines for punishment if found guilty based on varying factors. To be convicted of said crimes, the State bore the burden prove the crimes were committed beyond any reasonable doubt, which is the legal burden of proof required to obtain a criminal conviction.
Clas’s client was released from custody just a few hours after the jury returned verdicts of NOT GUILTY on all charges.