Christopher James Stoernell v. State, 14-14-00371-CR

In 1994 a group of teens, including appellant Christopher Stoernell and victim Ruth Majewski, gathered at Stoernell’s mother's home; a .22 revolver was passed around and Stoernell had been ‘‘dry firing’’ and proposing to play "Russian Roulette."
Stoernell and Majewski went into his bedroom with the gun despite others’ pleas; a gunshot was heard 5–10 minutes later and Majewski was mortally wounded in the center of her chest.
Witnesses gave varying immediate statements (some reporting Stoernell said he shot her, others that she shot herself); Stoernell made several inconsistent statements over the years.
Forensic testing found gunshot residue on both Stoernell’s and Majewski’s hands; forensic experts and an in-court demonstration supported that the fatal shot was fired from beyond Majewski’s physical reach.
The death was initially not prosecuted; nearly 20 years later a cold-case review led to Stoernell’s indictment for felony murder, a jury conviction, and a 60-year sentence.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument (State)	Defendant's Argument (Stoernell)	Held
Sufficiency of the evidence for felony murder	Evidence shows Stoernell pointed/played with the gun, had GSR on his hands, made inculpatory statements, and acted to hide/avoid responsibility — a jury could infer he shot Majewski during aggravated assault	Victim shot herself; forensic evidence (GSR on her hands, Stoernell observed near her after the shot) and alternative explanations raise reasonable doubt	Affirmed — viewing evidence in favor of verdict, a rational jury could find guilt beyond a reasonable doubt
Pre‑indictment delay (due process)	Delay resulted from investigative gaps; State’s reopening was not in bad faith and did not deprive Stoernell of a fair trial	19‑year delay caused prejudice (lost/unavailable witnesses and dimmed memories) and was punitive	Affirmed — defendant failed to prove intentional bad faith by the State and failed to show substantial prejudice
Admission of gruesome post‑mortem photos (Exs. 21 & 23)	Photos were probative to rebut suicide theory (show lack of stippling, arm length, and life‑saving sutures) and aided jury understanding	Photos were highly prejudicial and largely cumulative of other exhibits	Affirmed — trial court did not abuse discretion; probative value was not substantially outweighed by unfair prejudice

Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307 (defendant’s guilt must be provable beyond a reasonable doubt under the Jackson standard)
Gear v. State, 340 S.W.3d 743 (standard for reviewing sufficiency of the evidence in Texas)
Winfrey v. State, 393 S.W.3d 763 (deference to jury credibility and weight determinations)
Hooper v. State, 214 S.W.3d 9 (circumstantial evidence can establish guilt)
Krizan‑Wilson v. State, 354 S.W.3d 808 (pre‑indictment delay analysis and bad‑faith requirement)
United States v. Marion, 404 U.S. 307 (two‑prong test for due‑process dismissal for pre‑indictment delay)
Sonnier v. State, 913 S.W.2d 511 (admission of gruesome photos not an abuse when gruesomeness results from defendant’s conduct)
Matamoros v. State, 901 S.W.2d 470 (photographs adding to jury’s understanding of wounds are admissible)
Narvaiz v. State, 840 S.W.2d 415 (factors for weighing probative value vs. prejudicial effect of photos)