JS was charged with assaulting a man using a baseball bat, and was sentenced to prison time.  On appeal, Kara Hoopis Manosh reviewed the entire trial record and discovered that JS should have received a self-defense jury instruction based upon the testimony given.  The Rhode Island Supreme Court agreed, and ruled that the evidence did warrant an instruction to the jury that it could have considered self-defense as a possible defense in the case.  The law is clear- if any evidence is offered at trial that could possibly support a self-defense claim, then the trial justice must tell the jury about the law of self-defense.  The conviction was vacated and JS was released from prison.