Opinion ID: 2604134
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Mortuary Crimes.

Text: Ann Townsend testified that she was working as a secretary, together with her sister, Helen Wright, at the Conner-Johnson Mortuary in Los Angeles on November 6, 1978. Two Black men came to the door asking to see some caskets a few minutes after David Garcia, the janitor, had left. As she showed them caskets, the stockier of the two men pulled a gun. He hit her on the head with it and told her to take him to the money. She took him to her purse where he took two $20 bills. While this was happening, her sister Helen came downstairs; the stocky man grabbed Helen, hit her on the head with the gun and took both women upstairs to the safe. Helen opened the safe. The stocky man told the other man to take Ms. Townsend downstairs and kill her because he was going to kill her sister. The man took Ms. Townsend downstairs and beat her until she lost consciousness. As she came to, she heard the stocky man ask the other if she was dead. The man said yes. The stocky man then said that he had killed her sister. Ms. Townsend was unable to identify either of the two men. Los Angeles Police Detective Fesperman testified that he found the body of Helen Wright on the floor with her hands and feet bound. A blue cloth bag was under her head. Fingerprints at the scene were matched to those of Calvin Miller, who was eventually arrested and gave a statement implicating defendant. Calvin Miller testified that he had pleaded guilty to second degree murder in connection with the mortuary killing as part of a plea bargain in which he promised to testify against defendant. He met defendant at San Quentin and ran into him in 1978 in Los Angeles after they had both been paroled there. He and defendant were friendly. On November 6, 1978, defendant asked Miller to ride with him to David Garcia's house. When they got there, defendant picked up a .357 magnum in a blue cloth bag from Garcia. They then drove with Garcia to the Conner-Johnson Mortuary where defendant asked Garcia to go in and see how many people were there. Garcia did so and reported that there was only one person. Garcia then left, and Miller and defendant went inside. Once inside they asked a woman to show them some caskets. As she was doing so, defendant pulled a gun and hit her on the head with it, demanding money. They took the woman to the office and went through her desk and purse. Another woman came downstairs. They all then went upstairs. Defendant began beating on the newly discovered woman and demanding money. Defendant told Miller to take the first woman downstairs and kill her. Defendant said he was going to kill the one upstairs. When defendant came downstairs, Miller told defendant he had killed the woman. They left and drove by David Garcia's house. Defendant told Garcia that he had had to kill the woman because she started screaming. The testimony of David Garcia, who had died before the trial, was read from the transcript of defendant's preliminary hearing on these charges. He testified defendant and Miller had come to Garcia's house on November 6, 1978, to pick up the gun he had been keeping for defendant. It was a loaded .357 magnum. Garcia had kept the gun and bullets in a blue cloth bag that Garcia's girlfriend had made for him. He gave it to defendant in the blue cloth bag. Garcia rode with defendant and Miller to the Conner-Johnson Mortuary where Garcia worked as a janitor. Defendant asked Garcia to go in and see how many people were there. Garcia did so and told him one person. Garcia then left. Defendant and Miller drove to Garcia's house about 45 minutes later. They were covered with blood. Miller said to defendant, Man, you didn't have to kill her. Defendant answered, She screamed. Garcia identified the blue cloth bag found under Helen Wright's body as the one he had put the gun in when he gave it to defendant. Evelyn Bostic, Calvin Miller's live-in girlfriend, testified about receiving a series of phone calls from defendant. He told her he had committed the murder at the mortuary and asked her what was happening with Miller. Ms. Bostic contacted the police after having received two phone calls from defendant. The police put a recording device on her phone and recorded two phone conversations between Ms. Bostic and defendant. The recordings were played for the jury.