Opinion ID: 2387577
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Sufficiency of the Evidence to Support First Degree Murder Verdict

Text: Defendant contends there was insufficient evidence to support his conviction for first degree murder. At his trial, defendant argued to the jury that he randomly fired at Officer Ganz, which conduct would be insufficient to support the finding of premeditation and deliberation that is required for first degree murder. The law is settled. In reviewing a criminal conviction challenged as lacking evidentiary support, the court must review the whole record in the light most favorable to the judgment below to determine whether it discloses substantial evidencethat is, evidence that is reasonable, credible, and of solid value such that a reasonable trier of fact could find the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. An appellate court must accept logical inferences the jury might have drawn from the evidence, even if the court would have concluded otherwise. ( People v. Hovarter (2008) 44 Cal.4th 983, 1014-1015 [81 Cal.Rptr.3d 299, 189 P.3d 300].) `The standard of review is the same when the prosecution relies mainly on circumstantial evidence.' ( People v. Burney (2009) 47 Cal.4th 203, 253 [97 Cal.Rptr.3d 348, 212 P.3d 639].) (3) A murder that is willful, deliberate, and premeditated is murder in the first degree. (§ 189.) `Deliberation refers to careful weighing of considerations in forming a course of action; premeditation means thought over in advance. [Citations.] The process of premeditation ... does not require any extended period of time. `The true test is not the duration of time as much as it is the extent of the reflection. Thoughts may follow each other with great rapidity and cold, calculated judgment may be arrived at quickly....' [Citations.]' ( People v. Halvorsen (2007) 42 Cal.4th 379, 419 [64 Cal.Rptr.3d 721, 165 P.3d 512].) (4) `An intentional killing is premeditated and deliberate if it occurred as the result of preexisting thought and reflection rather than unconsidered or rash impulse. [Citation.] A reviewing court normally considers three kinds of evidence to determine whether a finding of premeditation and deliberation is adequately supportedpreexisting motive, planning activity, and manner of killingbut [t]hese factors need not be present in any particular combination to find substantial evidence of premeditation and deliberation.' ( People v. Burney, supra, 47 Cal.4th at p. 235.) These three factors, however, are merely a framework for appellate review; they need not be present in some special combination or afforded special weight, nor are they exhaustive. (See, e.g., People v. Prince (2007) 40 Cal.4th 1179, 1253 [57 Cal.Rptr.3d 543, 156 P.3d 1015]; People v. Bolin (1998) 18 Cal.4th 297, 331-332 [75 Cal.Rptr.2d 412, 956 P.2d 374].) As we will explain, the totality of the evidence is sufficient to support the jury's verdict.
When Officer Ganz detained him, defendant had a firearm in his car, which was not only a violation of the terms of his federal supervised release, but also a crime. (See, e.g., § 12021, subd. (a)(1).) Discovery of defendant's firearm, therefore, could have led to defendant's arrest and incarceration. Citing People v. Cummings (1993) 4 Cal.4th 1233, 1299-1300 [18 Cal.Rptr.2d 796, 850 P.2d 1], defendant contends there was no evidence to lead either him or an objective observer to believe his arrest for illegally possessing the firearm was highly likely or imminent, as this otherwise routine traffic stop was not the type of police contact likely to result in an arrest. Cummings is distinguishable, however, as it concerned the sufficiency of the evidence to support a special circumstance finding of murder committed for the purpose of preventing a lawful arrest. (See § 190.2, subd. (a)(5).) The issue in Cummings the imminence of the arrestsimply is not relevant to whether the possibility of arrest supported an inference that defendant had premeditated and deliberated the killing of Officer Ganz. The evidence at trial demonstrated that, at the time of his detention, defendant was committing an act that could have resulted in his returning to prison. A rational trier of fact could have found defendant shot Officer Ganz to prevent him from discovering the firearm that would have led to defendant's incarceration. (See, e.g., People v. Durham (1969) 70 Cal.2d 171, 189 [74 Cal.Rptr. 262, 449 P.2d 198] [`[K]nowing that they were all guilty ..., it is easy to understand why they might take life before they would suffer themselves to be arrested, their crime found out, and the severe punishment meted out to them ....'].) Defendant contends he could not have harbored a preexisting motive to kill Officer Ganz because it would have been impossible for the officer to discover his firearm, as the circumstances of the traffic stop did not justify a search of his car. Drivers, however, often keep the documentation necessary to operate a motor vehicle in the vehicle's glove compartment; it is not unheard of for a police officer to spot contraband when a driver opens the glove compartment to retrieve those documents. (E.g., Maryland v. Pringle (2003) 540 U.S. 366, 368 [157 L.Ed.2d 769, 124 S.Ct. 795]; see also In re Arturo D. (2002) 27 Cal.4th 60, 89 [115 Cal.Rptr.2d 581, 38 P.3d 433] (conc. & dis. opn. of Werdegar, J.).) Vehicles are also sometimes searched pursuant to a condition of supervised release, probation or parole, in an inventory search following an arrest, or for the safety of the police officer. (See, e.g., People v. Walker (1969) 273 Cal.App.2d 720, 724 [78 Cal.Rptr. 439] [For his own protection the officer was justified in opening the glove compartment himself, rather than to risk the possibility that defendant would pull a weapon out of it.].) Regardless of whether any of those circumstances actually existed with respect to defendant's stop, a rational trier of fact could have found that defendant feared his firearm would be discovered and decided to use it before Officer Ganz became aware of its existence. [8]
(5) Defendant correctly notes there was no evidence of extensive planning or preparation, as only a few minutes passed between the time Officer Ganz first shined his patrol vehicle's spotlight on defendant's car and the shooting. But as defendant concedes, under California law premeditation and deliberation can occur in a brief period of time. (See, e.g., People v. Halvorsen, supra, 42 Cal.4th at p. 419.) The lack of evidence of extensive planning does not negate a finding of premeditation. (See People v. Millwee (1998) 18 Cal.4th 96, 134 [74 Cal.Rptr.2d 418, 954 P.2d 990].) (6) Although defendant's interaction with Officer Ganz was brief, it was more than momentary. Officer Ganz twice instructed defendant to move his car out of the intersection, followed defendant into the mall parking lot, initiated a traffic stop, got out of his patrol vehicle, and then talked with defendant, all within the space of a few minutes. A rational trier of fact could have concluded defendant, knowing he illegally possessed a firearm, rapidly and coldly formed the idea to kill Officer Ganz during the course of these events, and therefore acted after a period of reflection rather than on an unconsidered or rash impulse. (See People v. Steele (2002) 27 Cal.4th 1230, 1249 [120 Cal.Rptr.2d 432, 47 P.3d 225]; see also People v. Millwee, supra, 18 Cal.4th at pp. 134-135 [the defendant arrived at the victim's house unarmed but could have thought about the use of lethal force while traveling there and then retrieving a stored rifle, deactivating the safety and chambering a live round].)
At trial, defendant argued that he lacked the requisite mental state when he attacked Officer Ganz, asserting that Officer Ganz had been fatally wounded by the first shot. The totality of the evidence presented, however, indicates defendant wanted to make certain Officer Ganz died. (See People v. Bolin, supra, 18 Cal.4th at pp. 332-333 [the killings took place within a few minutes of the victims' arrival and the evidence suggested rapid and purposeful planning in response to the potential consequences of his partner's carelessness].) Here, defendant did not merely fire one shot from his car and then flee; rather, he got out of his car, shot Officer Ganz again in the back as the officer was retreating, and then stood over the officer's prone body and fired a third shot while holding his firearm with two hands. (See People v. Koontz (2002) 27 Cal.4th 1041, 1080-1082 [119 Cal.Rptr.2d 859, 46 P.3d 335] [intent to kill was shown by the defendant's shooting the victim in a vital area from only a few feet away and then preventing a witness from calling an ambulance]; People v. Mayfield (1997) 14 Cal.4th 668, 767-768 [60 Cal.Rptr.2d 1, 928 P.2d 485] [gunshot fired at a victim's face was consistent with a preexisting intent to kill]; see also People v. Hawkins (1995) 10 Cal.4th 920, 956-957 [42 Cal.Rptr.2d 636, 897 P.2d 574] [shooting the victim in the back of the head in an execution-style murder was sufficient evidence of premeditation and deliberation despite minimal evidence of planning and motive].) Defense counsel at trial did highlight the weaknesses of the prosecution's theory of the case: the witnesses not only contradicted each other on various points, but the testimony of several witnesses also contradicted statements they had originally given to the police; no shell casings were found near the rear of the police vehicle; defendant's medical expert testified it was possible for the fatal shot to the head to have been fired first; and Don and La Fond initially were unable to identify defendant as the shooter. On review, however, we do not reevaluate the credibility of witnesses or resolve factual conflicts; rather, we presume the existence of every fact in support of the verdict that reasonably could be inferred from the evidence. (See People v. Burney, supra, 47 Cal.4th at p. 253; People v. Lindberg (2008) 45 Cal.4th 1, 27 [82 Cal.Rptr.3d 323, 190 P.3d 664].) Under that standard, the prosecution's evidence did support the verdict. (7) Citing People v. Anderson (1968) 70 Cal.2d 15 [73 Cal.Rptr. 550, 447 P.2d 942], defendant contends the fact he twice shot Officer Ganz in a nonfatal manner negates the possibility of premeditation and deliberation because the multiple shots and immediate pursuit of Officer Ganz demonstrate an explosion of violence or an eruption of animal fury. (See, e.g., People v. Alcala (1984) 36 Cal.3d 604, 625-627 [205 Cal.Rptr. 775, 685 P.2d 1126].) Not so. The manner of the shootingapproaching a prone victim, stopping over him, and then aimingshows a calculated design to ensure death rather than an unconsidered explosion of violence. ( People v. Horning (2004) 34 Cal.4th 871, 902-903 [22 Cal.Rptr.3d 305, 102 P.3d 228].) The mere possibility of a contrary finding as to defendant's mental state does not warrant a reversal of the guilt judgment. (See People v. Burney, supra, 47 Cal.4th at p. 253.) Defendant claims the evidence of intent to kill in this case is no stronger than in People v. Ratliff (1986) 41 Cal.3d 675, 695-696 [224 Cal.Rptr. 705, 715 P.2d 665], in which we reversed an attempted murder conviction. However, as we explained in People v. Arias (1996) 13 Cal.4th 92 [51 Cal.Rptr.2d 770, 913 P.2d 980], in Ratliff, we simply held that the `evidence of intent to kill was not so conclusive as to render harmless an erroneous failure to instruct on that issue.' ( People v. Avila (2009) 46 Cal.4th 680, 702, fn. 7 [94 Cal.Rptr.3d 699, 208 P.3d 634].) Unlike Ratliff, the trial court here properly instructed the jury on the mental state required for first degree murder, and defendant does not contend otherwise.