Opinion ID: 2387577
Heading Depth: 5
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Appealing to vengeance

Text: Defendant contends the prosecutor argued to the jury that it ought to avenge the murders of Officer Ganz and Catalina Correa by returning a death verdict. The prosecutor argued, I suggest that you show [defendant] the same sympathy that he showed to Martin Ganz and the same sympathy that he showed to Catalina Correa and there is no sympathy for any human so great to outweigh the aggravating factors in this case. As defendant concedes, we repeatedly have ruled it is not misconduct for a prosecutor to ask the jury to show a defendant the same lack of sympathy the defendant showed the victims (see, e.g., People v. Kennedy (2005) 36 Cal.4th 595, 636 [31 Cal.Rptr.3d 160, 115 P.3d 472]), and we do so again here. Even if the prosecutor's arguments were not a proper rebuttal to defendant's plea for sympathy, but rather a call for vengeance, isolated references to retribution or community vengeance do not constitute misconduct. (See People v. Davenport (1995) 11 Cal.4th 1171, 1222 [47 Cal.Rptr.2d 800, 906 P.2d 1068].)