Opinion ID: 2551919
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Jose C.

Text: During the ex parte hearing, the prosecutor said he challenged C. because, during the death qualification voir dire, C. indicated that he leaned away, or I thought he leaned away, from the death penalty from all that was said. The prosecutor added: Also, if the court will recall, Mr. [C] had indicated during [defense counsel's] questioning that he had had several fist fights out in the street. I don't know if the court recalls that or not, but he was talking about he and his brother being jumped and beaten up. The court said it did recall C. saying that. The prosecutor continued: I was very worried about a person that was out there. Maybe it wasn't his fault. I got the feeling that trouble rather followed Mr. [C] I felt uneasy with Mr. [C] being that he had been in so many fist fights, at least three that I think he had recalled, one was gang-related. It seems to me he might have been in an area where it was gang activity, I had an idea because of the fist fights and because he had been beaten up and so on. Also because there was great violence in this case, and fist fights in the cell, I asked Mr.[C] be excused on that basis. Defendant alleges that the record of the death-qualification voir dire provides no support for the prosecutor's statement that C. leaned away from the death penalty. When defense counsel asked whether he had thought about the death penalty, C. answered: I had given it some thought but I never come to a conclusion. I never had to form a strong opinion about it. C. agreed that he was not really strong pro death penalty, ... not strong anti-death penalty. During questioning by the prosecutor, C. said he had some friends that have very strong opinions for the death penalty. C. had discussions with his friends about this at work, but he usually did not take a position on the death penalty. C. explained: I'm kind of familiar with both sides, but I haven't taken a stand. Although there's been times when I have felt that thethere was a place for the death penalty. Asked by the prosecutor whether he lean[ed] away from it in most cases, C. answered: That's just the thing, you know, I've gone back and forth, because I think there's no mitigating circumstances, and sometimes I just think that, you know, there's just no other way to render justice. The prosecutor asked: The death penalty in some cases, in your mind, is appropriate and in other cases, life without parole is appropriate, is that right? C. answered, `Yes. The prosecutor then explained the process of penalty determination in a capital case, asking C. at various points whether he understood. The prosecutor then asked C. if he was a strong enough person to return a death verdict and affirm it in court in the presence of the defendant. C. replied, I think so. The prosecutor then said: You're really hesitating and it kind of worries me and I just want to know what's going on inside right now, because you're kind of smiling and because I know you're fishing in your mind for the rightthe right way to answer it truthfully. And I know that you're trying to be truthful. C. answered: I never thought that I'd get called into a case like this to begin with, being my first time ... and whatnot. So, I said it's not an easy decision to make and because it's such a decision to make, I can't just blurt out an answer. Finally, the prosecutor asked whether C. leaned one way or the other on the death penalty. C. answered: I think if I lean, it's toward the death penalty. During the general voir dire, in response to questions by defense counsel, C. described two incidents (not three, as the prosecutor later stated) in which he was involved in fights. He said the first incident happened a while back when he was probably around 15 or 16 or 17 years old, and there was three guys in another car, and some words were passed, what have you, and there was a chase ensued after that and [his] car stalled and he fought because two guys jumped on him. The second incident happened somewhere else, at a later date. He was walking down the street with his cousin when they bumped into two guys and they started a fight. His cousin hit one of them and then, out of the bushes came out about ten other guys. C. said the incidents would not affect his ability to be fair. The prosecutor did not question C. about these incidents or how they would affect his performance as a juror. Indeed, the prosecutor declined to question C. at all during general voir dire.