Appeals panel hears arguments in State v. Mega Ditchian over jury instructions, T‑shirt and body‑cam evidence

The Utah Court of Appeals heard oral argument in State v. Mega Ditchian over whether the trial court should have given jury instructions on mistake of fact and voluntary intoxication and whether certain evidence and closing‑argument references were prejudicial.

Appellants’ counsel Natalie Scabine told the three‑judge panel the contested instructions were statutory affirmative defenses and that omitting them created a reasonable likelihood of a more favorable outcome: "I think there's a reasonable likelihood of a more favorable outcome if the jury instructions had been provided in this case," she said, arguing intoxication or mistake could have negated the mental states charged for murder, discharge of a firearm and kidnapping.

The State, through counsel Jonathan Bower, urged the panel that the trial record and video evidence undercut the defendant’s theories. Bower…