State v. Mireles, 297 Kan. 339

Mireles was convicted of capital murder and rape; district court sentenced him to life without parole for murder and 203 months for rape, consecutive.
Mireles challenged admission of multiple autopsy and sexual-assault photographs and the lack of a felony-murder instruction as a lesser-included offense.
E.S. was a bar patron who left with Mireles; later, E.S. was murdered and autopsied with extensive trauma evidence.
DNA and physical evidence linked Mireles to the crime scene, motel room, dumpster items, and the victim’s body.
The State admitted various photographic exhibits, including gruesome autopsy and colposcope images, and the defense contested relevance and prejudice.
The trial court admitted the contested photographs, and Mireles appealed on admissibility, felony-murder instruction, and prosecutorial conduct

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Admissibility of autopsy/sexual-assault photos	Mireles argues exhibits were overly prejudicial and cumulative	State contends photos were probative and explained medical testimony	No abuse; photos were probative and properly limited
Felony-murder instruction as a lesser included offense	Felony murder should have been instructed since it is a lesser included offense	Evidence supported capital murder; no need for lesser instruction	Not clear error; instruction not required to be sua sponte given evidence and jury verdict
Prosecutorial misconduct in closing argument	Prosecutor offered personal opinion about guilt	Argument was within wide latitude and directional	Not prosecutorial misconduct; statement deemed permissible under Peppers

State v. Appleby, 289 Kan. 1017 (Kan. 2009) (multiplicity issue and proof of elements in capital murder)
State v. Cheever, 295 Kan. 229 (Kan. 2012) (felony murder as a lesser included offense of capital murder when underlying crime is rape/aggravated sodomy)
State v. Williams, 295 Kan. 506 (Kan. 2012) (clear-error standard for instructional errors)
State v. Hickles, 261 Kan. 74 (Kan. 1996) (photos proving elements of crime are relevant; gruesome photos may be admissible)
State v. Edwards, 291 Kan. 532 (Kan. 2010) (abuse-of-discretion standard for photographic evidence)
State v. Plummer, 295 Kan. 156 (Kan. 2012) (analysis for lesser-included offense instructions under 21-3414(3))
State v. Berry, 292 Kan. 493 (Kan. 2011) (limits on instruction error analysis and evidentiary review)
State v. Corbett, 281 Kan. 294 (Kan. 2006) (prosecutor’s opinion comments are improper unless within wide latitude)
State v. Peppers, 294 Kan. 377 (Kan. 2012) (distinguishes permissible prosecutorial argument from personal opinion)
State v. Edgar, 281 Kan. 47 (Kan. 2006) (felony murder elements and standard for conviction)