Supreme Court of California

Denial of petitioner's motion under Penal Code section 1405 for DNA testing of hair samples admitted at trial is affirmed where: 1) the standard of review of a trial court' ruling on a section 1405 motion is abuse of discretion; 2) a defendant is not required to show that a favorable DNA test would conclusively establish his or her innocence because it would be sufficient for the defendant to show that the identity of the perpetrator or accomplice was a controverted issue as to which the results of DNA testing would be relevant evidence; 3) to prevail on a section 1405 motion, a defendant must demonstrate that, had the DNA testing been available in light of all of the evidence, there is a reasonable chance and not merely an abstract possibility that the defendant would have obtained a more favorable result; and 4) although the DNA test would have been relevant to the issue of identity, there was sufficient evidence to determine guilt.

Appellate Information

• Decided 05/22/2008
• Published 05/22/2008

Judges

• MORENO, J.

Court

• Supreme Court of California

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Richard Jay Moller and Karen Kelly, under appointments by the Supreme Court, for Petitioner., Bill Lockyer and Edmund G. Brown, Jr., Attorneys General, Robert R. Anderson, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Mary Jo Graves, Assistant Attorney General, Louis M. Vasquez, Eric L. Christoffersen, Lloyd G. Carter and Kathleen A. McKenna, Deputy Attorneys General, for Real Party in Interest.


• For Appellees:
  
• No appearance for Respondent.