the benefit of a reasonable doubt prior to today with regard to his attentiveness it now is quite clear that good cause exists to excuse him because of his sleeping.. The jury returned a verdict of death at 11:00 a.m. The offenses with which defendant was charged occurred between June 27, 1984 and August 8, 1985. Starich and his wife entered the house but soon left to call the police when they saw that things in the house had been thrown on the floor. 702-705, 139 P.3d at pp. The photographs at issue here are gruesome because the charged offenses were gruesome, but they did no more than accurately portray the shocking nature of the crimes. Weeks also pointed out that the process of eliminating duplicate names from the two lists was inaccurate, because only the exact last name and the first four letters of the first name were compared. We noted that the Court of Appeal rejected both definitions, preferring instead a provocative compromise that defines community as that area within a 20-mile radius of the courthouse. (Williams v. Superior Court, supra, 49 Cal.3d 736, 742, 263 Cal.Rptr. 692, 809 P.2d 351. The Court: I think this is an area that I would not and in fact I am bound not to bring forth unless the jury itself raises the question during their deliberations. [] []. After taking a few labored breaths, Mr. Doi stopped breathing and the firefighters tried to resuscitate him. The relative disparity (3.5 percent divided by 17.5 percent), therefore, was 20 percent. Because the statutory requirements for joinder were met, defendant can establish error only on a clear showing of prejudice. I will be avenged. 80.) The court later instructed the jury that in determining the penalty it should consider The age of the defendant at the time of the crime. Defendant was 24 years old at the time of the first charged crime. 2531, 159 L.Ed.2d 403, alter this conclusion (People v. Cornwell (2005) 37 Cal.4th 50, 103, 104, 33 Cal.Rptr.3d 1, 117 P.3d 622.). Again I'm not trying to jump in and tell you guys how to run your ship. ), In any event, the proposed instruction was improper. There is no requirement that all jurors unanimously agree on any matter offered in mitigation. Defendant handcuffed the victim to the bed and fled. The juror's death had no connection to the present case and it is not apparent from the record that anything in the media accounts of the juror's murder would have affected the jury's deliberations. The trial court correctly recognized that the defendant has the right to retained counsel of his choice. (Ante, at p. 696, 139 P.3d at p. The People correctly point out that defendant did not ask the trial court to sever the charges into these four groups, and the trial court had no sua sponte duty to do so. 664. Peter Zazzara's father Vincent and step-mom Maxine were brutally murdered by Richard Ramirez in their ranch-style home in Whittier, Los Angeles, on March 27, The circumstance that there was no evidence of theft during the commission of the attempted murder of Hernandez and the murder of Okazaki does not establish that defendant did not harbor the intent to steal when he entered the residence. Night Stalker': 10 Most Terrifying Details About Satanic Serial As defendant acknowledges, we previously have rejected this contention. On July 25, 1989, during the closing arguments of counsel, one of the jurors sent the court a note that read as follows: As a seated juror in this case, I must state my concern regarding juror #3, Mr. The jury was instructed:In determining which penalty is to be imposed on the defendant, you shall consider all of the evidence which has been received during any part of the trial of this case, except as you may be hereafter instructed. 1237, 152 L.Ed.2d 291 (Mickens).) You are not capable of it. [A] court may admit even gruesome photographs if the evidence is highly relevant to the issues raised by the facts, or if the photographs would clarify the testimony of a medical examiner. (People v. Coleman (1988) 46 Cal.3d 749, 776, 251 Cal.Rptr. She had injuries on her body caused by burns. When the door to the condominium closed behind defendant, Hernandez opened the garage door and fled. The persons so listed shall be fairly representative of the population in the area served by the court, and shall be selected upon a random basis. This would be contrary to the declaration of legislative intent in section 190.6, subdivision (a), that the sentence in all capital cases should be imposed expeditiously. Accordingly, the trial court did not err in ordering the sentence of death be imposed prior to imposition of the determinate sentence on defendant's noncapital crimes. The record reflects that the experienced trial judge was well aware of his duty to weigh the prejudicial effect of the photographs against their probative value, and carefully did so. 81, 9, p. Therefore, the trial court did not err when it instructed the jury that it could consider guilt phase evidence in its penalty deliberations. (People v. Champion (1995) 9 Cal.4th 879, 946-947, 39 Cal.Rptr.2d 547, 891 P.2d 93; People v. Harris (2005) 37 Cal.4th 310, 359, 33 Cal.Rptr.3d 509, 118 P.3d 545.). A tube of lipstick was found on the floor. 8.85, the prosecutor told the jury: You may consider those crimes [of which defendant was convicted] in aggravation in determining penalty in this case only once; you can't consider them in section a and section b. This was reasonable, because this was the area from which the jurors actually were summoned. Although the prospective juror in the present case described himself as a strong supporter of the death penalty, he assured the court multiple times that he would not automatically vote for the death penalty and would, instead, reach a decision based upon all of the evidence. Defendant claims that his jury was not drawn from a fair cross-section of the population in violation of Code of Civil Procedure sections 197 and 203, article I, section 16 of the California Constitution, and the Sixth Amendment to the federal Constitution because the methods used to summons the jury venire resulted in the elimination of a disproportionate number of Hispanics. As explained below, defendant challenged the composition of the master list that was used to summon jurors during the 1987-1988 fiscal year that ended in June of 1988. Relevant evidence means evidence having any tendency in reason to prove or disprove any disputed fact that is of consequence to the determination of the action. (Evid.Code, 210.) 8. [Citations. You shall consider, take into account and be guided by the following factors, if applicable:(a)The circumstances of the crimes of which the defendant was convicted in the present proceeding and the existence of any special circumstances found to be true.(b)The presence or absence of criminal activity by the defendant, other than the crimes for which the defendant has been tried in the present proceedings, which involved the use or attempted use of force or violence or the express or implied threat to use force or violence or the express or implied threat to use force or violence.(c)The presence or absence of any prior felony conviction, other than the crimes for which the defendant has been tried in the present proceedings.(d)Whether or not the offense was committed while the defendant was under the influence of extreme mental or emotional disturbance.(e)Whether or not the victim was a participant in the defendant's homicidal conduct or consented to the homicidal act.(f)Whether or not the offense was committed under circumstances which the defendant reasonably believed to be a moral justification or extenuation for his conduct.(g)Whether or not the defendant acted under extreme duress or under the substantial domination of another person.(h)Whether or not at the time of the offenses the capacity of the defendant to appreciate the criminality of his conduct or to conform his conduct to the requirements of law was impaired as a result of mental disease or defect or the effects of intoxication.(i)The age of the defendant at the time of the crime.(j)Whether or not the defendant was an accomplice to the offense and his participation in the commission of the offense was relatively minor.(k)Any other circumstance which extenuates the gravity of the crime even though it is not a legal excuse for the crime and any sympathetic or other aspect of the defendant's character or record as a basis for a sentence less than death, whether or not related to the offense for which he is on trial.. When Ramirez was finally apprehended, he called Salerno Mr. At the conclusion of the guilt phase of the trial, the court instructed the jury, without objection by defendant, as follows: You may have observed that the defendant has worn restraints while in the courtroom. I think to give this instruction would be error and I'm going to ask you to withdraw it. (1239, subd. After defendant left, Yu crawled a short distance and then lay still. On October 24, 1985, the prosecutor, defendant, Gallegos, Arturo Hernandez, and Daniel Hernandez appeared in camera before the municipal court. Defendant argued in his opening brief that the trial court erred in denying his motion for sequestered voir dire of the jury. He found his mother, Jennie Vincow, dead in her bedroom. Inside, she found her roommate, Okazaki, lying dead on the kitchen floor. 82-85), defense counsel in the present case entered into a contract with both defendant and his family to represent defendant. On appeal, defendant argues that the charges could have been easily severed, for example, into four separate groups involving the following groups of victims: (1) Petersen, Whitney B., Sophie D., and Carol K.; (2) Elyas A., Okazaki, Yu, and Kneiding; (3) Zazzara, Chainarong K., Bell, Cannon, and Nelson; and (4) Vincow. WebVincent and Maxine Zazzara Richard invaded the Zazzara home. The prosecution conceded that the two charges related to Higgins were not properly joined and the court granted the prosecution's motion to dismiss those charges. ), We find no fault with the trial court's response to this tragic event. [Defense Counsel]: You know you have a right not to take the stand? Defendant claims that the methods of execution of either lethal injection or, at defendant's election, the gas chamber, deprives him of due process, because the state has failed to develop proper standards for the administration of lethal injection, and both methods constitute cruel and unusual punishment in violation of the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendment to the federal Constitution. Defendant objected to, and moved to quash, the master list of jurors drawn for use in the 1987-1988 fiscal year. He later asked Salerno and Carrillo if they would be attending his execution. Atty., Los Angeles, Cal., argued, for plaintiff-appellee. 83, 759 P.2d 1260.) The court viewed hours of videotape recordings of television news broadcasts. After some discussion about whether both photographs depicted the same wound, at the court's suggestion, the prosecutor withdrew one of the photographs and the court admitted into evidence the other photograph. The court granted defendant a one-week continuance to present his case. In People v. Burgener, supra, 29 Cal.4th 833, 856, 129 Cal.Rptr.2d 747, 62 P.3d 1, we observed that it was uncertain whether an absolute disparity of 10.7 percent, which produced a relative disparity of 65 percent, was sufficient to satisfy the second prong of the Duren test. Linda Doi-Fick, the daughter of William and Yuriko Doi, later identified several items of property that had been taken from her parents' home, including her mother's wallet and pieces of jewelry, which had been recovered from Felipe Solano, who had purchased the items from defendant. In counties with more than one court location, the rules shall reasonably minimize the distance traveled by jurors. Accordingly, defendant has not preserved this claim for review. Drawers had been pulled out in the bedroom and bathroom, and clothing was strewn around the room. This does not explain, however, defendant's failure to express dissatisfaction with the jury ultimately selected. 191, 800 P.2d 547, this Court held that both Daniel Hernandez and Arturo Hernandez should properly have been discharged by the trial court as retained counsel on the defendant's motion based on their incompetence in a pending murder case. This does not accurately describe our decision in Ortiz. [Gallegos]: Yes, I would like to see his profile without glasses and also from behind. ZAZZARA Maxine The accuracy of determining if names on the two lists were duplicates would be increased if, in addition to the names, the birth date and address of the prospective jurors were compared. In eight of these crimes, property later was recovered that had been stolen from the victim's residence. WebMurdered , Serial Killer Victim , Shot , Stabbed , Bludgeoned. He stated that death was a just punishment for certain crimes. When asked what crimes he had in mind, he answered: Mostly murder, I would think. He added that if the defendant were convicted of first degree murder and found to be eligible for the death penalty, he would vote to impose the death penalty unless he were convinced otherwise. Manuel Delatorre pursued and struck defendant on the head a second time, causing defendant to fall. Trial counsel could have respectfully disagreed and asked the court to rule on his request but, instead, withdrew the proposed instruction, thus forfeiting this issue. Psychologist Elizabeth Loftus, an expert in eyewitness identifications, testified that memory degrades over time, that witnesses who are assaulted with weapons focus upon the weapon rather than the features of the assailant, and that members of one race have difficulty identifying members of other races. (189. The de novo standard of review applies to our consideration of the five relevant factors: (1) nature and gravity of the offense; (2) nature and extent of the media coverage; (3) size of the community; (4) community status of the defendant; and (5) prominence of the victim. [Citation.]' Defendant argues on appeal that the trial court erred in denying his motion for severance in violation of his Fifth, Sixth, Eighth, and Fourteenth Amendment rights, asserting that this case could have been easily severed, for example, into four separate groups. The trial court did not err in denying defendant's severance motion.6, Section 954 permits related offenses to be charged in a single accusatory pleading unless there is good cause to try them separately: An accusatory pleading may charge two or more different offenses connected together in their commission or two or more different offenses of the same class of crimes or offenses, provided, that the court in which a case is triable, in the interests of justice and for good cause shown, may in its discretion order that the different offenses or counts set forth in the accusatory pleading be tried separately or divided into two or more groups and each of said groups tried separately., Defendant's motion in the trial court to sever the charges was confusing. 618, 545 P.2d 1322, fn. You don't understand me. White Pages - Find People In | Addresses Christopher Petersen drove his wife to the hospital. She had multiple bruises, lacerations and contusions on her face. He brought her son from the closet and handcuffed them together to the bed. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. ), Section 1368 states: (a) If, during the pendency of an action and prior to judgment, a doubt arises in the mind of the judge as to the mental competence of the defendant, he or she shall state that doubt in the record and inquire of the attorney for the defendant whether, in the opinion of the attorney, the defendant is mentally competent [] (b) If counsel informs the court that he or she believes the defendant is or may be mentally incompetent, the court shall order that the question of the defendant's mental competence is to be determined in a hearing which is held pursuant to Sections 1368.1 and 1369., In People v. Hayes (1999) 21 Cal.4th 1211, 91 Cal.Rptr.2d 211, 989 P.2d 645, defense counsel asserted that his client was incompetent and moved for a hearing pursuant to section 1368. Holding a news conference, she held up a police sketch of the killer, and also went on to describe the evidence from all the cases throughout the state crucial information that hadnt been made public. On March 28, 1985, about 8:30 p.m., Polo went to the home that Vincent Zazzara shared with his wife Maxine to deliver the day's receipts from the restaurant and Defendant asserts that the above quoted inquiry of counsel was deficient because the court failed to determine the nature of the terms and conditions of the retainer agreements entered into between defendant and counsel and defendant's family and counsel, failed to determine the impact of counsels' agreement with the family on their representation of defendant, and failed to consider the impact of the agreements with respect to counsel's purported waiver of appellant's right to a full and proper inquiry regarding his mental competency. Defendant asserts that counsels' expressed willingness to represent defendant pro bono, if necessary, deepened the appearance of grave conflicts of interest, triggering the trial court's duty of inquiry., The right to effective assistance of counsel, secured by the Sixth Amendment to the federal Constitution, and article I, section 15 of the California Constitution, includes the right to representation that is free from conflicts of interest. [Citation.] [Citations.] (People v. Smith (2003) 30 Cal.4th 581, 641, 134 Cal.Rptr.2d 1, 68 P.3d 302; People v. Marshall (1990) 50 Cal.3d 907, 269 Cal.Rptr. On May 31, 1988, the trial court denied defendant's motion to quash the jury venire. Prospective jurors are randomly summoned from this list of qualified jurors when a court requires jurors. [Citation. The court in its discretion may exclude evidence if its probative value is substantially outweighed by the probability that its admission will create substantial danger of undue prejudice (Evid.Code, 352.) Paul Strand, Ph.D., testified for defendant that during the last week of November, 1986, he conducted a telephone survey of 300 persons who were eligible to be prospective jurors, using a computer program that generates random telephone numbers. 128, 616 P.2d 1301.10 In response to questioning by the court, Prospective Juror Robert D. stated that he would not automatically vote to impose the death penalty and, instead, would consider all of the evidence before making a decision. To persuade him to talk, they put him in the same cell as The Hillside Strangler, and he got excited. The Court: All right. On August 21, 1989, defendant filed a motion to voir dire the jurors regarding their reactions to the death of Juror Singletary. He died on 27 March 1985 in Whittier, 10234 Strong Ave, Whittier, CA 90601 | realtor.com [] Mr. Arturo Hernandez: Yes. ] (People v. Bradford, supra, 15 Cal.4th 1229, 1315, 65 Cal.Rptr.2d 145, 939 P.2d 259. A. Under the bar plan, an attorney would have to be a member of the California bar for a minimum of ten years, be an attorney of record in at least fifty trials, forty of which must have been submitted to a jury for decision, and thirty of the fifty must have been felonies. Police recovered fingerprints from the screen found on the living room floor that later were identified as defendant's fingerprints. [Defense Counsel]: You know that Mr. Hernandez [codefense counsel] has been in El Paso talking to friends and relatives about testifying on your behalf? Defendant contends that trial counsel withdrew the requested instruction only in response to the court's request, adding that trial counsel obeyed the court and withdrew the instruction. But the court did not order trial counsel to withdraw the request, it merely asked him to do so after explaining why the court concluded the proposed instruction was improper. She had been strangled and beaten and stabbed in the neck. at p. 988, 275 Cal.Rptr. Just over 10 percent of those polled said they had taken special precautions. Citing our decision in People v. Hannon (1977) 19 Cal.3d 588, 138 Cal.Rptr. The defense did not contest that defendant was a burglar. With few exceptions, the media reports were accurate. While in jail awaiting trial, defendant used his blood to draw a pentagram on the floor and write the number 666. Virginia Petersen later identified defendant at a lineup and at trial. When he and Daniel Hernandez were seeking to be substituted as counsel for defendant, Arturo Hernandez stated they had entered into a written contract with defendant, adding: Also, the other parties that have retained us, his family, who are also liable, have acquired some financial responsibility to us due to that contract. The court had the exchange with defendant, which is quoted above, in which defendant stated he had read and understood the contract. The photographs also clarified the coroner's testimony. On April 14, 1986, during the preliminary hearing in municipal court, defense counsel requested that we be allowed to talk to you in chambers and without the presence of the prosecutor regarding a request by defendant not to attend the preliminary hearing. [Citation. We ruled that the judicial district, rather than the entire county was the relevant community, but we expressly declined to consider the Court of Appeal's alternate position, because the requirement that no juror in Los Angeles County be required to serve at a courthouse more than 20 miles from his or her residence had since been repealed (id. He was previously married to Maxine Zazzara and Betty Grace Peterson Zazzara. [] So the point I am trying to make to you is this: you may file and lodge all of the cassettes you wish, all those that you have, but I don't think that in my discretion that it is a judicious use of my time to sit there and watch them all. Dresser drawers were open and clothes had been thrown around the room. 8.85,14 which quotes the aggravating and mitigating factors identified in section 190.3 the jury shall consider, if relevant, in determining the proper penalty, because the court did not delete references to mitigating factors for which no evidence was introduced. Defendant expressly does not raise an assignment of error as to counsel's conflicts of interest with respect to the retainer agreements, preferring to raise this issue in a subsequent petition for writ of habeas corpus. On the morning of July 2, 1985, a neighbor, Frank Starich, noticed that a window screen was lying on the front porch and her newspaper was in the driveway. As explained above, reversal of the judgment is not required because there were no significant errors in defendant's trial. Copyright 2023, Thomson Reuters. Defendant argues that Prospective Juror Robert D. should have been excused for cause because he made it clear that he favored the death penalty as the appropriate punishment and would place a burden on a defendant to prove that death was not the appropriate punishment.. ), Moreover, contrary to defendant's suggestion, the trial court did not express a doubt as to defendant's competence to stand trial. When the lineup formed, defendant was the second person in line. Murder and rape are assaultive crimes against the person and, as such, are offenses of the same class of crimes' within the meaning of section 954 and were properly joinable. Though entitlement to representation by a particular attorney is not absolute [citation], the state should keep to a necessary minimum its interference with the individual's desire to defend himself in whatever manner he deems best, using any legitimate means within his resources-and that desire can constitutionally be forced to yield only when it will result in significant prejudice to the defendant himself or in a disruption of the orderly processes of justice unreasonable under the circumstances of the particular case [citation]. (Id. Defendant later asked the court to question the jurors regarding the effect of the juror's death, but the court was asked to rule on this request more than two weeks after the jury had resumed deliberations. 476. Defendant returned to the living room and brought Somkid K. into the bedroom, threatening to kill her children if she resisted. Defendant contends he was denied his right to due process and to a reliable determination of penalty under the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments to the federal Constitution because the court instructed the jury in accordance with CALJIC No. Arturo Hernandez: We understand fully; and, for the record, we have indicated to the court in the past that at this point we anticipate no conflict of interest. 6. Now, quite frankly, the photographs are unpleasant. Although the murder of a fellow juror is shocking, defendant's attempt to equate that event with the death of a family member, especially a parent, is unavailing. Defendant argues that these instructions, coupled with the prosecutor's argument that the jury should consider each of these murders in turn, the first degree murders, and each of the special circumstances in turn, and make a decision on each one, impermissibly invited the jury to double-count the special circumstances, in violation of our decision in People v. Melton (1988) 44 Cal.3d 713, 768-769, 244 Cal.Rptr. Some people in the crowd were holding the newspaper with defendant's photograph on the front page. He has remembered things I have said at prior hearings and reported them back to me. The court stated it had no doubts about defendant's competency, and defendant interrupted the court to state: I am sane. Arturo Hernandez added that he and cocounsel have been visiting with Mr. Ramirez for a lengthy period of time. at pp. ] (People v. Williams (2001) 25 Cal.4th 441, 447-448, 106 Cal.Rptr.2d 295, 21 P.3d 1209, fn. (People v. Waidla (2000) 22 Cal.4th 690, 713, 94 Cal.Rptr.2d 396, 996 P.2d 46.). Serial Killer Database Wiki. The Court: All right. Section 654 bars multiple punishment for a single act or omission. Although it literally applies only where such punishment arises out of multiple statutory violations produced by the same act or omission, we have extended its protection to cases in which there are several offenses committed during a course of conduct deemed to be indivisible in time. [Citation.
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