Opinion ID: 1181110
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Reference to Inapplicable Statutory Mitigating Factors.

Text: (35) Pursuant to CALJIC No. 8.84.1, at the conclusion of the penalty phase the court instructed the jury that it shall consider ... if applicable each of the enumerated statutory aggravating and mitigating factors (ง 190.3). Defendant contends that the trial court's failure sua sponte to delete reference to inapplicable mitigating factors permitted the jury to treat the absence of such factors as aggravating factors. We previously have rejected the contention that the trial court is required to delete inapplicable mitigating factors from CALJIC No. 8.84.1. ( People v. Miranda, supra, 44 Cal.3d 57, at pp. 104-105; People v. Ghent, supra, 43 Cal.3d at pp. 776-777.) Although the absence of any of the statutory factors should not be considered aggravating ( People v. Davenport (1985) 41 Cal.3d 247, 288-290 [221 Cal. Rptr. 794, 710 P.2d 861]), implicit in our previous decisions is the conclusion that CALJIC No. 8.84.1 does not of itself suggest to the jury that it may consider the absent statutory mitigating factors in aggravation. In the instant case there was no instruction given nor prosecution argument made that might have led the jury to the improper use of absent mitigating factors. Indeed, the prosecutor made no reference to the absent factors, discussing only the mitigating factors relied on by defendant. Defense counsel, in turn, went through the entire list of factors, informing the jury which of the mitigating factors did not apply.