Rule 3.490 Determination of Degree of Offense

When someone is charged with a crime that has different levels of severity, the jury can find that person guilty of a lower level of that crime if the evidence supports it. For example, if someone is charged with first-degree murder, the jury could find them guilty of second-degree murder instead if that fits the evidence better.

The judge controls which options the jury can choose from. If there is no evidence to support a certain level of the crime, the judge will not give the jury the option to pick that level. The jury can only decide between choices that have actual evidence behind them.