Supreme Court of California

Defendant's conviction and death sentence for, inter alia, first degree murder, robbery, kidnapping for robbery offenses committed against five victims is: 1) vacated in part as to the lying-in-wait special-circumstance findings related to four victims; and 2) reversed in part as to six convictions for simple kidnapping. The judgment is modified to reflect a single sentence for conspiracy, and sentences for a conspiracy conviction in one count and for certain robbery convictions are stayed. However, despite any error, the remainder of the convictions as well as the death sentence are affirmed over claims of error regarding: 1) prearraignment delay; 2) denial of a change of venue; 3) denial of a motion for severance; 4) whether admission of a codefendant's out-of-court statements violated state law and deprived him of his Sixth Amendment rights; 5) jury selection issues; 6) erroneous admission of evidence; 7) a Crawford claim; 8) the sufficiency of the evidence; 9) the constitutionality of the lying-in-wait special circumstance; 10) felony-murder special circumstances; 11) whether certain crimes of conviction were lesser included offenses of kidnapping for robbery; 12) a failure to hold a competency hearing; and 13) various other penalty phase issues.

Appellate Information

• Decided 04/28/2008
• Published 04/28/2008

Judges

• KENNARD, J.

Court

• Supreme Court of California

Counsel

• For Appellees:
  
• Lynne S. Coffin and Michael J. Hersek, State Public Defenders, under appointment by the Supreme Court, and Kathleen M. Scheidel, Assistant State Public Defender, for Defendant and Appellant., Bill Lockyer and Edmund G. Brown, Jr., Attorneys General, Robert R. Anderson and Dane R. Gillette, Chief Assistant Attorneys General, Pamela C. Hamanka, Assistant Attorney General, Keith H. Borjon, John R. Gorey, Sharlene A. Honnaka and Deborah J. Chuang, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent.