Opinion ID: 2590211
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Issues of Evidentiary Sufficiency

Text: Defendant contends that eight of his murder convictions, relating to the victims enumerated above, must be reversed for insufficiency of evidence. He argues that, apart from what he terms speculative inferences drawn from the list found in his car, modus operandi was the only evidence or theory of his guilt and, as such, could not support the verdicts. In addressing a challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence supporting a conviction, the reviewing court must examine the whole record in the light most favorable to the judgment to determine whether it discloses substantial evidenceБ─■ evidence that is reasonable, credible and of solid valueБ─■such that a reasonable trier of fact could find the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. ( People v. Johnson (1980) 26 Cal.3d 557, 578, 162 Cal.Rptr. 431, 606 P.2d 738.) The appellate court presumes in support of the judgment the existence of every fact the trier could reasonably deduce from the evidence. ( People v. Reilly (1970) 3 Cal.3d 421, 425, 90 Cal.Rptr. 417, 475 P.2d 649; accord, People v. Pensinger (1991) 52 Cal.3d 1210, 1237, 278 Cal.Rptr. 640, 805 P.2d 899.) The same standard applies when the conviction rests primarily on circumstantial evidence. ( People v. Perez (1992) 2 Cal.4th 1117, 1124, 9 Cal.Rptr.2d 577, 831 P.2d 1159.) Although it is the jury's duty to acquit a defendant if it finds the circumstantial evidence susceptible of two reasonable interpretations, one of which suggests guilt and the other innocence, it is the jury, not the appellate court that must be convinced of the defendant's guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. ( Ibid. ) `If the circumstances reasonably justify the trier of fact's findings, the opinion of the reviewing court that the circumstances might also reasonably be reconciled with a contrary finding does not warrant a reversal of the judgment. [Citation.]' ( People v. Thomas (1992) 2 Cal.4th 489, 514, 7 Cal. Rptr.2d 199, 828 P.2d 101.) Applying this standard, we explain why defendant's argument fails to persuade us reversal of any of the convictions is warranted.
In the context of this case, the jury could reasonably find defendant guilty of murdering Crisel based on such features of the crime as the similarity of the drugs found in Crisel's bodyБ─■high levels of antihistamines, among other drugsБ─■to those found in the body of Loggins, to whom strong evidence linked defendant, and the presence of a burn on Crisel's left nipple made by a car cigarette lighter, a feature also shared by the Hall murder, to which defendant was linked by fingerprint evidence, as well as the Inderbieten murder. A tablet containing some of the drugs found in Crisel was found in defendant's car, which he had owned at the time of Crisel's death. The prosecutor argued that Crisel was represented on defendant's list by the entry MARINE DRUNK OVERNIGHT SHORTS, referring to the fact that Crisel, a Marine, was clothed only in shorts when found and to the length of time it was thought defendant had kept Crisel before disposing of his body. Crisel, moreover, fit the physical profile of most of defendant's victims, being a White male of average size, and, also like most of them, Crisel's body was dumped near a freeway.
In the context of this case, the jury could reasonably find defendant guilty of Inderbieten's murder based on the method by which the offense was committed and the way in which the killer disposed of the body. Alcohol and diazepam, as well as the barbiturate secobarbital, were found in Inderbieten's body. The cause of death was anoxia due to suffocation. A car cigarette lighter had burned Inderbieten's eyes and nipples (a feature shared by the Hall murder, to which defendant was connected by fingerprint evidence, and the Crisel murder). Ligature marks were found on Inderbieten's wrists. Inderbieten, like Hall, had been emasculated and, as in the DeVaul and John Doe Huntington Beach cases, anal swabs revealed the presence of semen. When found, Inderbieten's body was clad only in a pair of pants, partially pulled down, and his body bore road burns from being dumped from a moving vehicle near a freeway not far from where several of defendant's other victims were found.
Based on the cause of death (acetaminophen overdose, with ligature strangulation as a contributing factor), the burning of a nipple by a cigarette lighter, the absence of one of Klingbeil's bootlaces, the ejection of the body from a moving vehicle onto Interstate 5, and the presence on defendant's list of an entry assertedly corresponding to Klingbeil (HIKE OUT LB BOOTS, referring to the fact the victim was wearing boots and apparently had recently been in Long Beach), in the context of this case the jury reasonably could find defendant guilty of Klingbeil's murder. Klingbeil, moreover, fit the physical profile of defendant's typical victim, being a young White male of average size.
Based on the cause of death (ligature strangulation), the presence of alcohol and benzodiazepine drugs (diazepam and flurazepam) in Keith's system at death, the presence of ligature marks on his wrists, the ejection of the body from a moving vehicle, and the presence on defendant's list of an entry apparently corresponding to Keith (MARINE CARSON, referring to the victim's status as a United States Marine and the fact defendant apparently met him in Carson), in the context of this case the jury reasonably could find defendant guilty of Keith's murder.
Although the cause of Young's death (a stab wound to the heart) differed from that of defendant's other victims, in the context of this case the jury reasonably could find defendant guilty of Young's murder in light of certain details of the offense: Young's belt and one of his shoelaces were missing when his body was found, alcohol and diazepam were in his system at the time of death, he had a ligature mark on his right wrist, he had been partially emasculated, and his body had been ejected from a moving vehicle. Additionally, a hair consistent with defendant's was found on Young's pants, and an entry on defendant's list (JAIL OUT, assertedly referring to the fact Young had been released from the Orange County jail hours before he was killed) corresponded to Young. Young, moreover, fit the physical profile of defendant's typical victim.
Based on the method of killing and certain other details of the offense, in the context of this case the jury reasonably could find defendant guilty of the murder of Wiebe. Specifically, the cause of Wiebe's death was ligature strangulation; his belt and shoes were missing when the body was found; a sock had been inserted in his rectum; his pants were undone at the top, and his penis was partially exposed; and his body was dumped at the Seventh Street on-ramp to the San Diego Freeway, near the spots where the bodies of Moore, Inderbieten and Church were found. (The evidence that defendant murdered Church was particularly strong, as a photograph of Church was found in defendant's car and Church's electric shaver was found in defendant's house after his arrest. The jury could consider the proximity of the location of the victims' bodies as evidence the same person killed all four men.) Additionally, although Wiebe had a low blood-alcohol level and no drugs in his system at the time of his death, unlike most of defendant's other victims, Wiebe was smaller and lighter than the others. Further, an entry on defendant's list (7TH ST.) could reasonably be thought to correspond to Wiebe.
This unidentified victim fit the physical profile of defendant's typical victim, being a young White male of about average size, the cause of death was suffocation, his wrists bore ligature marks, he had been emasculated and dumped from a moving vehicle, his shoes were missing, and there was no belt in his pants. This victim had a blood-alcohol level of 0.07 percent and assertedly was represented on defendant's list by the entry AIRPLANE HILL; the prosecutor presented evidence that the location where this victim's body was found had been known as Airplane Hill when defendant was growing up in the vicinity. Based on the foregoing evidence in the context of this case, the jury reasonably could conclude defendant murdered this victim.
Based on the cause of death and certain other details of the offense in the context of this case, the jury reasonably could conclude defendant had murdered Moore. Specifically, Moore died as a result of ligature strangulation; his body had been dumped from a moving vehicle in the area of the Seventh Street off-ramp from the 405 and 605 Freeways, near where the bodies of Wiebe, Inderbieten and Church would later be found; a sock had been inserted into his rectum and one foot was bare, as with victim Wiebe and somewhat similar to victim Loggins, to whom defendant was linked by photographic evidence; and Moore assertedly was represented on defendant's list by the entry EDM. (The victim's name was stenciled on his shorts.) Additionally, Moore fit the profile of defendant's typical victim, and he was a Marine. We have no difficulty concluding that, despite variations among these offenses, which spanned almost seven years, the jury reasonably could find defendant guilty of the murder of Crisel, Inderbieten, Klingbeil, Keith, Young, Wiebe, John Doe Huntington Beach, and Moore.
Defendant contends the evidence was insufficient to support his conviction for the murder of Robert Wyatt Loggins, Jr., noting a coroner's investigator originally classified the death as due to an accidental overdose of drugs based on the lack of external trauma to the body. Defendant also argues that because the record lacks sufficient proof of criminal agency in Loggins's death, the list entry assertedly pertaining to Loggins (MC HB TATTOO) should have been excluded. Addressing the latter question first, we have no trouble concluding the corpus delicti rule was satisfied here. In any criminal prosecution, the corpus delicti must be established by the prosecution independently from the extrajudicial statements, confessions or admissions of the defendant. [Citations.] The elements of the corpus delicti are (1) the injury, loss or harm, and (2) the criminal agency that has caused the injury, loss or harm. [Citation.] Proof of the corpus delicti need not be beyond a reasonable doubt; a slight or prima facie showing is sufficient. [Citation.] ( People v. Diaz (1992) 3 Cal.4th 495, 528-529, 11 Cal.Rptr.2d 353, 834 P.2d 1171.) The identity of the perpetrator is not an element of the corpus delicti. ( People v. Cobb (1955) 45 Cal.2d 158, 161, 287 P.2d 752.) That Loggins's naked body was found beside a road in a trash bag with a rope around his ankles and wrists supplies at least a prima facie showing of criminal agency, inasmuch as the bodies of victims of accidental drug overdose typically would not be disposed of in such a fashion. The inference of criminal agency in connection with the death is therefore reasonable and supports admission into evidence of the list entry assertedly pertaining to Loggins. The evidence as a whole, moreover, sufficed to prove defendant murdered Loggins, under the standard applied in connection with defendant's challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence to support eight of the other murder convictions. In addition to the evidence recited above, photographs of Loggins were found in defendant's car and in a briefcase located in defendant's house. In some of the photographs Loggins was partially clothed or naked, and one photograph depicted Loggins holding his penis. According to Loggins's father, however, Loggins was not homosexual (and thus, one could infer, would not voluntarily have posed for defendant). Loggins, who had various tattoos, was a Marine and was last seen alive by some fellow Marines at the Huntington Beach pier; the prosecutor plausibly argued the entry MC HB TATTOO on defendant's list referred to Loggins. The jury could properly find defendant guilty of the first degree murder of Robert Wyatt Loggins.
Defendant argues his conviction of mayhem must be reversed because the crime of mayhem requires a live victim (see People v. Jentry (1977) 69 Cal.App.3d 615, 629, 138 Cal.Rptr. 250) and the record lacks any evidence Nelson was alive when he was emasculated. We disagree with defendant's characterization of the record. Officer Donald Batchelder of the Los Angeles Police Department testified that, shortly after he discovered Nelson's body on the Euclid Street on-ramp to the Garden Grove Freeway while driving to work at 5:15 a.m. on February 12, 1983, he saw Nelson's foot move. Nelson's body was warm to the touch, although a responding Garden Grove police officer detected no pulse or respiration. Pathologist Robert Richards, reviewing the autopsy report of Dr. Fischer (who was deceased at the time of trial), which noted the bleeding caused by the severing of Nelson's penis and scrotum was not that great, opined the emasculation probably occurred postmortem, although it might have happened perimortem, or around the time of death. Although the bleeding, in Dr. Richards's opinion, was not that great and there [wa]sn't too much in the way of tissue response to the cutting, evidently there was some bleeding and some tissue response, lending support to Dr. Richards's testimony the emasculation could have occurred perimortem. The jury could reasonably find the elements of mayhem were present here. That a contrary conclusion might also be reasonable does not compel reversal of the conviction. ( People v. Thomas, supra, 2 Cal.4th at p. 514, 7 Cal.Rptr.2d 199, 828 P.2d 101.) Even were we to reverse the mayhem conviction, however, there could be no conceivable effect on the judgment, in light of the 16 murders of which defendant was convicted and the eight additional murders, evidence of which was presented during the penalty phase.
Defendant contends the record contains insufficient evidence to support his conviction of sodomy and the related special circumstance pertaining to victim Inderbieten, in that proof is lacking of penetration and anal intercourse or that the victim was alive at the time of the alleged sodomy. Defendant also contends the evidence failed to establish that the sodomy was not merely incidental to the murder. The invalidity of the special circumstance finding, he urges, undermines the integrity of the death judgment required by the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments to the federal Constitution. Contrary to defendant's argument, we find in the record sufficient evidence to sustain the verdict and finding, and there would be no plausible basis for reversal of the judgment even were we to reach a different conclusion. As described above ( ante, 99 Cal. Rptr.2d at p. 21, 5 P.3d at pp. 86-87), about 6:15 a.m. on November 18, 1978, a passing motorist saw Michael Joseph Inderbieten's dead body on a transition road from Seventh Street leading to the 405 and 605 Freeway on-ramps in Long Beach. A responding Long Beach police officer observed that the victim was wearing only a pair of pants, partially pulled down and exposing his buttocks. The cause of death was determined to be anoxia due to suffocation. The victim's scrotum and testicles had been removed, probably antemortem. The victim's anus appeared to be slightly dilated, but the pathologist detected no trauma to the rectum. Analysis of anal swabs taken at the autopsy revealed the presence of semen and spermatozoa containing type B blood activity. The semen could have come from someone who was either a nonsecretor or a type B secretor. The victim, a secretor, had type B blood; defendant is a nonsecretor. Citing the lack of trauma to the rectum and the evidence the victim had type B blood, defendant argues the semen found on the anal swabs probably came from the victim. As the Attorney General observes, however, absent is any evidence the victim ejaculated around the time of death. On these facts, including the condition of the victim's clothing, the jury reasonably found defendant committed the sodomy of Inderbieten, and we will not disturb its finding on appeal. Likewise, the record contains sufficient evidence to support the jury's implicit conclusion the victim was alive when defendant committed sodomy, as required for conviction. ( People v. Ramirez (1990) 50 Cal.3d 1158, 1176, 270 Cal.Rptr. 286, 791 P.2d 965.) Defendant reasons that the pathologist's finding of no injury to the rectum, despite slight dilation of the anus, indicates any penetration must have occurred after death, with its concomitant relaxation of the sphincter muscles. The jury, however, may have inferred, as the Attorney General suggests, that the sodomy was committed before the emasculation and resultant bleeding. In any case, as in People v. Ramirez , [although the prosecution's pathologist may not have been able to determine clinically whether penetration occurred shortly prior to death, at death, or just after death, in the absence of any evidence suggesting that the victim's assailant intended to have sexual conduct with a corpse [citation], we believe that the jury could reasonably have inferred from the evidence that the assailant engaged in sexual conduct with the victim while [he] was still alive rather than after [he] was already dead. Under the applicable standard of review [citations], we conclude that a reasonable trier of fact could have found the essential elements of sodomy beyond a reasonable doubt. ( Id. at pp. 1176-1177, 270 Cal.Rptr. 286, 791 P.2d 965.) Defendant further argues the evidence fails to establish the sodomy special-circumstance finding, in that it cannot be determined whether the sodomy occurred in the course of murder, or conversely whether the murder occurred in the course of sodomy. He observes that the prosecutor focused exclusively on a theory of deliberate and premeditated murder, and the jury was not given a felony-murder instruction. We conclude, however, the evidence sufficed to enable a reasonable trier of fact to find that defendant committed a deliberate and premeditated murder while engaged in the commission of sodomy, or, in other words, that the sodomy was not merely incidental to the murder. (See People v. Green (1980) 27 Cal.3d 1, 59-62, 164 Cal.Rptr. 1, 609 P.2d 468.) The pattern of offenses disclosed by the evidence in this case, into which the jury could reasonably find the Inderbieten murder fit, is one of gaining control of the victims by means of drugs and/or alcohol, followed by a killing together with some sort of sexual misconduct and/or mutilationБ─■here, bothБ─■not apparently done incidentally or as an afterthought. [9] Even if we agreed with defendant that reversal of the sodomy special circumstance finding were required, however, under the circumstances of this case such reversal would not compel reversal and retrial of penalty. Given that this jury convicted defendant of 16 counts of first degree murder and heard evidence, in the penalty phase, showing he committed eight additional murders, it is not reasonably possible the jury would have returned a more favorable verdict absent the sodomy special-circumstance finding. ( People v. Brown. (1988) 46 Cal.3d 432, 448, 250 Cal. Rptr. 604, 758 P.2d 1135.)