Opinion ID: 1148738
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The Grand Theft Conspiracy Count

Text: As the majority recite the facts at considerable length, I will summarize only the essential points. The prosecution established that on April 10, 1968, the night of the Garcia Road fire, the conspirators met and expressly agreed to pay the medical expenses of arsonist Hanak, and to conceal the source of his burns, the cause of the fire, and Zamora's connection with Hanak. The prosecution further established the existence of two overt acts specifically committed in furtherance of the foregoing agreement, which acts occurred within the three-year limitations period, namely, (1) Saling's offer on June 30, 1970, to obtain trust deeds from Zamora in payment for Hanak's unlawful services, and (2) Saling's attempt, in December 1970 or January 1971, to obtain money from Zamora to pay to Hanak for his participation in the arson. The majority hold that since the last insurance payment was made on September 16, 1968, more than three years prior to June 22, 1972, when the indictment was returned, the grand theft conspiracy charge was not timely filed. I respectfully suggest, however, that the relevant cases of this court, and of the United States Supreme Court, support the contrary view. First, in People v. Leach (1975) 15 Cal.3d 419 [124 Cal. Rptr. 752, 541 P.2d 296], we recently reaffirmed our holding in People v. Saling (1972) 7 Cal.3d 844, 851-853 [103 Cal. Rptr. 698, 500 P.2d 610], to the effect that although a conspiracy usually terminates when the underlying substantive offense is completed, `[p]articular circumstances may well disclose a situation where the conspiracy will be deemed to have extended beyond the substantive crime to activities contemplated and undertaken by the conspirators in pursuance of the objectives of the conspiracy,' and that it is a question for the trier of fact to determine when the conspiracy ended. (15 Cal.3d at p. 431, quoting from 7 Cal.3d at p. 852.) In Saling, for example, we upheld the jury's implied finding that a murder conspiracy did not terminate until one of the conspirators had been paid for his services rendered in furtherance of the conspiracy. Likewise, in the present case the jury, as trier of fact, might reasonably have concluded that the grand theft conspiracy had not yet terminated when Saling offered, and later attempted, to arrange payment to Hanak. The majority, however, refuse to reach the foregoing conclusion, reasoning that since Saling and Leach involved an evidentiary question, rather than application of the statute of limitations, those cases are not applicable. However no such distinction was recognized in Saling and Leach, which applied general principles of conspiracy law for purposes of deciding when a criminal conspiracy terminates. Both cases involved the application of the rule that a conspirator's statements are admissible against his coconspirators only when made during the conspiracy. Yet these general principles invoked by us in Saling and Leach certainly have equal force and application in the present case, for once again, this time in ascertaining the commencement of the statute of limitations, we are faced with the question  when has a criminal conspiracy terminated? While consistency is not everything it is something. I think it significant that the United States Supreme Court has declined to follow the majority's course: As the majority concede, the Warren Court in Grunewald v. United States (1957) 353 U.S. 391 [1 L.Ed.2d 931, 77 S.Ct. 963, 62 A.L.R.2d 1344], a statute of limitations case, applied without hesitation the general conspiracy principles enunciated in two prior cases, Krulewitch v. United States (1949) 336 U.S. 440 [93 L.Ed. 790, 69 S.Ct. 716] and Lutwak v. United States (1953) 344 U.S. 604 [97 L.Ed. 593, 73 S.Ct. 726], both coconspirator-hearsay rule cases. The majority not only decline to consider the extended conspiracy doctrine announced by our own Saling and Leach cases, but they likewise fail to follow the principles set forth by the United States Supreme Court in Grunewald, supra, to the effect that an express agreement between conspirators to cover up their crime may extend the applicable statute of limitations. In this connection the majority insist that Grunewald never indicated what quantum of evidence would be sufficient direct proof of an agreement to conceal which would extend the duration of the conspiracy.... ( Ante, p. 554.) To the contrary, with due deference, I must note that the high court carefully explained that the requisite agreement cannot be implied from mere acts of concealment, but must consist of an express agreement between the conspirators. Commenting on the nature of the evidence in Grunewald, the high court explained: There is not a shred of direct evidence in this record to show anything like an express original agreement among the conspirators to continue to act in concert in order to cover up, for their own self-protection, traces of the crime after its commission.  (353 U.S. at p. 404 [1 L.Ed.2d at p. 943], italics added.) In the present case, in contrast, there was direct evidence, in the form of testimony from coconspirator Hanak himself, that the conspirators met on the day of the Garcia Road fire and expressly and specifically agreed to cover up the crime, and their connection with it, and to pay for Hanak's medical expenses, thus meeting any reasonable standards as to the quantum of evidence required. As I interpret the Grunewald principles, applicable to the facts in the case before us, this express agreement would have the effect of extending the grand theft conspiracy beyond the date of final payment of the insurance proceeds, and the statutory limitations period would not commence to run until the last overt act committed in furtherance of that express agreement, namely, Saling's efforts to provide payment for Hanak. The majority suggest that, for purposes of applying the statute of limitations, conspirators who expressly agree to conceal their crime must be treated no differently than any other offenders who take the usual steps to avoid being caught. It seems obvious to me that an express conspiracy of concealment poses a far greater hindrance to effective police investigation than that associated with the usual escape following commission of a routine criminal offense. In the matter before us the participants actively and by prearrangement and design aided and abetted each other by supplying alibis, cover stories, and subsequent financial and other assistance. It seems to me that, under such circumstances, the conspiracy should be deemed to continue until completion of the last of the overt acts done in furtherance of the prearranged plan and scheme. The majority acknowledge that their extended decision herein sets aside multiple convictions for offenses which, in the words of the majority, were actually committed by defendants. ( Ante, p. 574.) I respectfully suggest that the majority's conclusion need not follow and that the Leach and Saling cases of this court, and the Grunewald decision of the Supreme Court, furnish sufficient legal precedent for affirmance of the grand theft-conspiracy conviction.