Opinion · Supreme Court of the United States

Cage v. Louisiana

498 U.S. 39

Type
Opinion
Court
Supreme Court of the United States
Jurisdiction
Federal
Date
1990-11-13
Topic
general

How later courts describe this case

  • holding that a jury instruction permitting a conviction on proof less than beyond a reasonable doubt violates due process
  • holding that the terms "grave" and "substantial" suggest a higher degree of doubt than that actually required to acquit
  • holding that the common meaning of the terms “substantial” and “grave” suggested a “higher degree of doubt than is required for acquittal under the reasonable-doubt standard”
  • holding that a defendant’s due-process rights were violated where a judge instructed jurors that reasonable doubt was equivalent to a “grave uncertainty” and an “actual substantial doubt” and that jurors could convict if morally certain of a defendant’s guilt
  • holding that failure to raise claim in post-conviction appeal is considered abandonment of claim
  • holding that the use of the three phrases together could be interpreted by a reasonable juror to allow a finding of guilt based on a degree of proof below that required by due process
  • explaining that “[i]n construing the instruction, we consider how reasonable jurors could have understood the charge as a whole”
  • holding as unlawful instruction that reasonable doubt was “such doubt as would give rise to a grave uncertainty” and “an actual substantial doubt,” and that what was required for conviction was a “moral certainty” that the defendant was guilty

Citator

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Authority status
pending
Cited by
1171 opinions

Headnotes

  1. Constitutional Law — Due Process In state criminal trials, the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment protects the accused against conviction except upon proof beyond a reasonable doubt of every fact necessary to constitute the crime with which he is charged. 498 U.S. 39 (citing In re Winship, 397 U.S. 358, 364 (1970))
  2. Criminal Law & Procedure — Jury Instructions In determining whether a reasonable doubt instruction is constitutionally defective, a reviewing court must consider how reasonable jurors could have understood the charge as a whole. 498 U.S. 39 (citing Francis v. Franklin, 471 U.S. 307, 316 (1985))
  3. Criminal Law & Procedure — Burden of Proof A reasonable doubt instruction is contrary to the beyond-a-reasonable-doubt requirement where it equates reasonable doubt with a "grave uncertainty" and an "actual substantial doubt," and states that what is required is a "moral certainty," rather than evidentiary certainty; the words "substantial" and "grave," as commonly understood, suggest a higher degree of doubt than is required for acquittal under the reasonable doubt standard, and a reasonable juror could have interpreted the instruction to allow a finding of guilt based on a degree of proof below that required by the Due Process Clause. 498 U.S. 39
CAGE v. LOUISIANA,498 U.S. 39(1990)
111 S.Ct. 328
CAGEv. LOUISIANA
ON PETITION FOR WRIT OF CERTIORARI TO THE SUPREME COURT OF LOUISIANA
No. 89-7302
Decided November 13, 1990
The Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment protects the accused against conviction except upon proof beyond a reasonable doubt of every fact necessary to constitute the crime with which he is charged.In re Winship,397 U.S. 358,364. Petitioner Cage was convicted in Louisiana of first-degree murder and was sentenced to death. In his trial's guilt phase, the jury was instructed that guilt must be found beyond a reasonable doubt, that reasonable doubt was "such doubt as would give rise to a grave uncertainty" and "an actual substantial doubt," and that what was required was a "moral certainty." In affirming Cage's conviction, the State Supreme Court rejected his argument that,inter alia, the instruction violated the Due Process Clause, and concluded that, "taking the charge as a whole," reasonable persons would understand the reasonable doubt definition.Held:The instruction was contrary to the "beyond a reasonable doubt" requirement articulated inWinship. The words "substantial" and "grave" suggest a higher degree of doubt than is required for acquittal under the reasonable doubt standard. When those statements are then considered with the reference to "moral," rather than evidentiary, certainty, a reasonable juror, taking the charge as a whole, could have interpreted the instruction to allow a finding of guilt based on a degree of proof below that required by the Due Process Clause.

Certiorari granted;554 So.2d 39, reversed and remanded.
PER CURIAM.
The motion of petitioner for leave to proceedin forma pauperisand the petition for a writ of certiorari are granted.

In state criminal trials, the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment protects the accused against conviction except upon proof beyond a reasonable doubt of every fact necessary to constitute the crime with which he is charged.In re Winship,397 U.S. 358,364(1970); see alsoJacksonv.Virginia,443 U.S. 307,315-316(1979). This reasonable doubt standard "plays a vital role in the AmericanPage 40scheme of criminal procedure."Winship,397 U.S., at 363. Among other things, "[i]t is a prime instrument for reducing the risk of convictions resting on factual error."Ibid. The issue before us is whether the reasonable doubt instruction in this case complied withWinship.

Petitioner was convicted in a Louisiana trial court of first-degree murder, and was sentenced to death. He appealed to the Supreme Court of Louisiana, arguing,inter alia, that the reasonable doubt instruction used in the guilt phase of his trial was constitutionally defective. The instruction provided in relevant part:
"If you entertain a reasonable doubt as to any fact or element necessary to constitute the defendant's guilt, it is your duty to give him the benefit of that doubt and return a verdict of not guilty. Even where the evidence demonstrates a probability of guilt, if it does not establish such guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, you must acquit the accused. This doubt, however, must be a reasonable one; that is one that is founded upon a real tangible substantial basis and not upon mere caprice and conjecture.Itmust be such doubt as would give rise to a grave uncertainty, raised in your mind by reasons of the unsatisfactory character of the evidence or lack thereof. A reasonable doubt is not a mere possible doubt.It is an actual substantial doubt. It is a doubt that a reasonable man can seriously entertain. What is required is not an absolute or mathematical certainty, but amoralcertainty."554 So.2d 39,41(La. 1989) (emphasis added).


The Supreme Court of Louisiana rejected petitioner's argument. The court first observed that the use of the phrases "grave certainty" and "moral certainty" in the instruction, "if taken out of context, might overstate the requisite degree of uncertainty and confuse the jury."Ibid. But "taking the charge as a whole," the court concluded that "reasonable persons of ordinary intelligence would understandPage 41the definition of `reasonable doubt.'"Ibid. It is our view, however, that the instruction at issue was contrary to the "beyond a reasonable doubt" requirement articulated inWinship.

In construing the instruction, we consider how reasonable jurors could have understood the charge as a whole.Francisv.Franklin,471 U.S. 307,316(1985). The charge did at one point instruct that, to convict, guilt must be found beyond a reasonable doubt; but it then equated a reasonable doubt with a "grave uncertainty" and an "actual substantial doubt," and stated that what was required was a "moral certainty" that the defendant was guilty. It is plain to us that the words "substantial" and "grave," as they are commonly understood, suggest a higher degree of doubt than is required for acquittal under the reasonable doubt standard. When those statements are then considered with the reference to "moral certainty," rather than evidentiary certainty, it becomes clear that a reasonable juror could have interpreted the instruction to allow a finding of guilt based on a degree of proof below that required by the Due Process Clause.fn*

Accordingly, the judgment of the Supreme Court of Louisiana is reversed, and the case is remanded for further proceedings not inconsistent with this opinion.It is so ordered.Page 42
  1. Page 41 Similar attempts to define reasonable doubt have been widely criticized by the Federal Courts of Appeals. See,e.g., Monkv.Zelez,901 F.2d 885,889-890(CA10 1990);United Statesv.Moss,756 F.2d 329,333(CA4 1985);United Statesv.Indorato,628 F.2d 711,720-721(CA1 1980);United Statesv.Byrd,352 F.2d 570,575(CA2 1965); see alsoTaylorv.Kentucky,436 U.S. 478,488(1978). ↩