California Court of Appeal

Order recommitting defendant to the Department of Mental Health for a period of two years under the Sexually Violent Predators Act is affirmed over claims that: 1) the trial court erred in instructing the jury that as a matter of law defendant had suffered the requisite qualifying prior convictions; and 2) defendant was denied the effective assistance of counsel, by defense counsel's failure to object on proper grounds to the admission of the prior trial testimony of a victim witness.

Appellate Information

• Decided 12/21/2006
• Published 01/18/2007

Judges

• BAMATTRE-MANOUKIAN, Acting P.J.

Court

• California Court of Appeal

Counsel

• For Appellees:
  
• Bill Lockyer, Attorney General, Robert R. Anderson, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Gerald A. Engler, Senior Assistant Attorney General, Seth K. Schalit, Supervising Deputy Attorney General, Bridget Billeter, Deputy Attorney General, for Respondent, the People., Jennifer A. Mannix, under appointment by the Sixth District Appellate Program, for Defendant and Appellant, Elijah Samson Lopez.