State of Tennessee v. Thomas Richardson, Jr. - Concurring

The defendant in this case was indicted on a single count of felony murder committed during the perpetration of arson. Under the felony murder rule, criminal liability for the murder is imposed based on the culpability required for the underlying felony without separate proof of any culpability with regard to the death. As our supreme court stated in Farmer v. State, 296 S.W.2d 879, 883 (Tenn. 1956), “it is not necessary that the State prove an intention to kill, or that it was committed willfully, deliberately, premeditatedly and with malice aforethought.”