State v. Idrees, 324 P.3d 651

Idrees Idrees was convicted by a jury of being an accomplice to murder (first degree felony) and possession of a firearm by a restricted person, but he appeals only the murder conviction.
At a January 20, 2012 party, Idrees and Akol Joker fought with the victim and insulted him as a snitch/bitch.
Two nights later in a group SUV, Joker grew angrier; witnesses testified Idrees sometimes handed, or allowed Joker to take, a gun, while Idrees tried to pacify the situation.
Idrees previously showed the victim the gun and mimicked gunfire, and later told Joker to “chill out” while in the front seat.
Joker ultimately shot the victim in the head; the meaning of the phrase “squash it” became a central issue at trial and in Idrees’s ineffective-assistance challenge.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the evidence proves guilt beyond a reasonable doubt	Idrees argues the State failed to prove intent and aiding the crime	Idrees contends the evidence is insufficient to prove accomplice liability	Yes; evidence supported conviction beyond a reasonable doubt
Whether trial counsel was ineffective for not presenting expert interpretation of “squash it”	Idrees asserts lack of expert interpretation deprived jury of meaning	Idrees contends trial counsel performance was deficient	No prejudice; verdict would likely be same even with different interpretation

State v. Shumway, 68 P.3d 94 (Utah Supreme Court, 2002) (insufficiency review standard; standard of evidence review on appeal)
State v. Briggs, 197 P.3d 628 (Utah Supreme Court, 2008) (accomplice liability standard and mental state required)
State v. Workman, 852 P.2d 981 (Utah Supreme Court, 1998) (credibility and inference weighing on appeal)
State v. Maestas, 299 P.3d 892 (Utah Supreme Court, 2012) (evidence sufficiency framework; light most favorable to verdict)
Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668 (U.S. Supreme Court, 1984) (ineffective assistance standard; prejudice required)