Opinion ID: 1345745
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 24

Heading: Instructions: Unadjudicated Criminal Conduct and Threats of Violence.

Text: Defendant contends that even if the evidence of his automobile arson and threats was properly admitted the court erred in instructing the jury that this evidence and other evidence of criminal conduct could be considered in aggravation. The court instructed the jury: Evidence has been introduced for the purpose of showing aggravating circumstances that the defendant, ... shot at people in automobiles in 1966; the arson of an automobile in 1967; the ice axe assault on Ava Gawronski; the attempted rape of Ava Gawronski; the threats toward the lives of Michael Lerner and Joe Brassell; and the letters written to Ava Gawronski and George Lerner, which involve the express or implied use of force or violence. The instruction also required that the jury find beyond a reasonable doubt that defendant did those acts before considering them as evidence in aggravation. No instructions were requested or given on the elements of any crime or crimes that defendant may have committed by this conduct. There is no sua sponte obligation to instruct on the elements of other crimes at the penalty phase, however. ( People v. Howard (1988) 44 Cal.3d 375, 437, fn. 25 [243 Cal. Rptr. 842, 749 P.2d 279]; People v. Phillips (1985) 41 Cal.3d 29, 72, fn. 25 [222 Cal. Rptr. 127, 711 P.2d 423].) Moreover, the instructions that the court intended to give were discussed with the prosecutor and with defendant, who stated that [t]hese are fine when asked if he wished any special instructions. Among the instructions given by the court were those defining the elements of the crimes of which defendant had been convicted. Those instructions advised the jury of the elements of arson (of a house) and rape, but did not define attempt. Defendant first complains that it was improper to instruct the jury that it could consider the evidence of his threats and his automobile arson because the threats were not criminal conduct and the automobile arson was not a crime of violence toward persons. Therefore, he argues, the evidence was not relevant to a statutory aggravating factor. ( People v. Philips, supra, 41 Cal.3d 29, 72; People v. Boyd, supra, 38 Cal.3d 762, 775.) (18) We have not heretofore considered whether it is error to instruct a capital jury that evidence admitted without objection that is logically relevant to the penalty determination, but is not legally relevant because it is not evidence related to a statutory factor, may be considered as evidence of an aggravating factor. The question has arisen in other contexts, however. In People v. Hannon (1977) 19 Cal.3d 588 [138 Cal. Rptr. 885, 564 P.2d 1203], the defendant did not object to evidence of alleged suppression of evidence by defendant's attorney. Because there was no showing that the defendant was aware of or authorized the action, the evidence would not support an inference that the suppression reflected defendant's consciousness of guilt, i.e., the evidence was not sufficiently relevant to be admissible. The court instructed the jury on suppression of evidence and consciousness of guilt. We held that the failure to object to the admission of the evidence waived any error. Lack of objection at that time did not, however, waive defendant's right to appellate review of the propriety of the court's jury instruction on the issue of suppression of evidence and consciousness of guilt because the Legislature has specifically provided that an objection is not required in order to preserve instruction issues affecting the substantial rights of a defendant. (Pen. Code, § 1259.) As the record contains no evidence to support the suggested inference, the court erred in giving the instruction.  (19 Cal.3d at p. 600, italics added. See also, People v. Harris (1981) 28 Cal.3d 935, 956-957 [171 Cal. Rptr. 679, 623 P.2d 240].) In Hannon, the evidence of the attorney's conduct was not relevant to the defendant's guilt. In the instant case, by contrast, the evidence of defendant's prior criminal conduct and threats of violent conduct is logically relevant to the appropriate penalty. Permitting the jury to consider relevant evidence did not contravene any constitutional provision. We conclude, therefore, that it was not error for the trial court to instruct the jury that the evidence could be considered aggravating evidence. A defendant may not permit relevant aggravating evidence to come in without objection and then complain that the court permitted the jury to consider it. Even were we to conclude that the instruction should not have been given, we do not believe reversal would be required. The only reference during the prosecutor's argument to defendant's threats to kill was not to the threats as an aggravating factor within section 190.3. He did not argue that the threats were evidence of criminal conduct or of a potential for future violent conduct, but simply asked the jury to consider the terror that Joe Brassell and Michael Lerner must feel, knowing that a man that has committed murder before, that is bright enough, has threatened their lives. Tom Peters, the same. Mr. Clark has thought, `if I can make them feel uneasy, that's exactly what I wanted to do.' And with respect to the automobile arson and the 1966 shooting incidents, the prosecutor told the jury that those aren't really aggravating circumstances. At least I did not present those to you in the form of an aggravating circumstance, but more importantly to show you that Mr. Clark's state of mind on January 6, 1982 existed some ten to fifteen years earlier. Long before Ava Gawronski was even known by the defendant. The emphasis was thus on defendant's penchant for causing others to undergo mental anguish, not on the relevance of the threats as indicators of future violent conduct, or on defendant's past criminal conduct as aggravating factors. We see no possibility therefore that the court's invitation to the jury to consider the evidence may have had an impermissible impact on the verdict.