Supreme Court of California

In an automatic appeal in a death penalty case, the conviction and sentence are affirmed in their entirety over claims of error regarding: 1) a failure to appoint Keenan counsel; 2) inadequate investigative funds; 3) prosecutorial failure to give required notice of aggravating evidence; 4) judicial error for indicating during voir dire that the murder was premeditated; 5) a refusal to allow voir dire on question of religious affiliation; 6) Wheeler/Batson challenges; 7) erroneous admission of aggravating evidence; 8) exclusion of tape recording and video recording showing remorse; 9) improper exclusion of mitigating evidence; 10) prosecutorial misconduct; 11) jury instructions; 12) responses to jury questions on a life sentence; 13) juror misconduct; 14) consideration of a probation report prior to a ruling on a section 190.4 motion; 15) constitutional challenges to the death penalty statute; and 16) cumulative error.

Appellate Information

• Decided 12/28/2006
• Published 12/28/2006

Judges

• MORENO, J.

Court

• Supreme Court of California

Counsel

• For Appellees:
  
• Charles M. Bonneau, Jr., under appointment by the Supreme Court, Sacramento, for Defendant and Appellant., Bill Lockyer, Attorney General, Manuel M. Medeiros, State Solicitor General, Robert R. Anderson, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Mary Jo Graves, Assistant Attorney General, Eric L. Christoffersen, Stephen G. Herndon and Craig S. Meyers, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent.