Garrett v. State

Garrett v. State, 573 S.W.2d 543 (Tex. Crim. App. 1978) held that the actor's conduct constituting the underlying felony must be separate and distinct from the "clearly dangerous" act which causes the person's death. In Garrett, the defendant initiated a fight with a store clerk, pulled a gun to scare him, and the gun "went off," killing the clerk. Garrett was charged with felony murder, with the underlying felony being aggravated assault. The Court held that "there must be a showing of felonious criminal conduct other than the assault causing the homicide." There is not and never was any such requirement in section 19.02(b)(3), nor was there any such requirement at common law. Under modern common law, "homicide is murder if the death results from the perpetration or attempted perpetration of an inherently dangerous felony."