Opinion ID: 1399120
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: claims of error affecting guilt phase

Text: Defendant contends that the prosecutor and trial judge improperly vouched for the credibility of witnesses Buckley and Rowan and misled the jury about the inducements they received for their testimony. Their actions, he claims, violated various rights guaranteed him by the Fifth, Sixth, Eighth, and Fourteenth Amendments.
At the outset of Brian Buckley's testimony, and again in closing argument, the prosecutor read to the jury the text of Buckley's plea agreement. We reproduce it in the margin. [4] (7a) Defendant contends that the agreement told the jury that the prosecutor and the judge were making all necessary findings regarding Buckley's credibility. This, he argues, improperly vouched for Buckley's credibility. Defense counsel made no objection to the reading of the plea agreement. Accordingly, defendant may not complain about it on appeal. (Evid. Code, § 353.) Defendant suggests that for various reasons he should be relieved of the requirement of contemporaneous objection. He does not persuade us. Nonetheless, even if the claim were properly before us, we would find no reversible error. (8) As defendant acknowledges, the existence of a plea agreement is relevant impeachment evidence that must be disclosed to the defense because it bears on the witness's credibility. ( Giglio v. United States (1972) 405 U.S. 150, 153-155 [31 L.Ed.2d 104, 108-109, 92 S.Ct. 763].) Indeed, we have held that when an accomplice testifies for the prosecution, full disclosure of any agreement affecting the witness is required to ensure that the jury has a complete picture of the factors affecting the witness's credibility. ( People v. Phillips (1985) 41 Cal.3d 29, 47 [222 Cal. Rptr. 127, 711 P.2d 423].) (7b) Defendant's objection is not to admission of the agreement per se, but to the failure to excise certain portions that he views as vouching for Buckley's credibility and as placing on the trial court rather than the jury the responsibility to determine whether Buckley was telling the truth. Defendant first argues that reference to the district attorney's preliminary determination of Buckley's credibility as a condition of the plea agreement was improper because it implied the existence of information, known to the prosecutor but undisclosed to the jury, that proved Buckley was telling the truth. ( United States v. Roberts (9th Cir.1980) 618 F.2d 530, 536.) (9) Defendant correctly notes that a prosecutor may not express a personal opinion or belief in a witness's credibility when there is `substantial danger that jurors will interpret this as being based on information at the prosecutor's command, other than evidence adduced at trial.' ( People v. Adcox, supra, 47 Cal.3d at p. 236 (quoting People v. Bain (1971) 5 Cal.3d 839, 848 [97 Cal. Rptr. 684, 489 P.2d 564)].) (7c) We agree that the plea agreement's reference to the district attorney's preliminary determination of Buckley's credibility had little or no relevancy to Buckley's veracity at trial, other than to suggest that the prosecutor found him credible. Thus, the reference should have been excised on a timely objection on the ground of irrelevancy. We conclude, however, that its presentation to the jury was harmless under these circumstances. ( People v. Watson (1956) 46 Cal.2d 818, 836 [299 P.2d 243].) The prosecutor argued for Buckley's credibility based on the evidence adduced at trial, not on the strength of extrajudicial information obliquely referred to in the plea agreement. Moreover, common sense suggests that the jury will usually assume  without being told  that the prosecutor has at some point interviewed the principal witness and found his testimony believable, else he would not be testifying. We note, too, that the requirement that Buckley preliminarily satisfy the prosecutor as to his credibility cuts both ways: it suggests not only an incentive to tell the truth but also a motive to testify as the prosecutor wishes. ( United States v. Henderson (4th Cir.1983) 717 F.2d 135, 137.) Thus, even if defendant had preserved an objection to admission of the challenged portion of the Buckley plea agreement, we would decline to reverse his conviction. Defendant further argues that the plea agreement made the trial court a monitor of Buckley's truthfulness, and thereby placed its prestige behind Buckley's testimony, by providing that [i]n the event of a dispute, the truthfulness of Mr. Buckley's testimony will be determined by the trial judges who preside over these hearings. He contends this provision caused the jury to feel a lesser responsibility to make an independent determination of Buckley's truthfulness. Our decision in People v. Phillips, supra, 41 Cal.3d 29, requires full disclosure to the jury of any agreement bearing on the witness's credibility, including the consequences to the witness of failure to testify truthfully. Full disclosure is not necessarily synonymous with verbatim recitation, however. Portions of an agreement irrelevant to the credibility determination or potentially misleading to the jury should, on timely and specific request, be excluded. Here, it was crucial that the jury learn what would happen to Brian Buckley in the event he failed to testify truthfully in defendant's trial. But the precise mechanism whereby his truthfulness would be determined was not a matter for its concern. The provision detailing the judge's determination of Buckley's credibility in the event of any dispute arguably carried some slight potential for jury confusion, in that it did not explicitly state what is implicit within it: that the need for such a determination would arise, if at all, in connection with Buckley's sentencing, not in the process of trying defendant's guilt or innocence. For these reasons, had defendant objected to its admission, the trial court would have acted correctly in excluding it on a relevancy objection. Nonetheless, we see no possibility that defendant was prejudiced by its admission. The jury could not reasonably have understood Buckley's plea agreement to relieve it of the duty to decide, in the course of reaching its verdict, whether Buckley's testimony was truthful. Nor could the jury have been misled by prosecutorial argument. The prosecutor argued that Buckley had nothing to gain by lying because the trial court would make a determination of his credibility in the event of a dispute. The context of the remarks made it clear that determination would occur if the prosecutor sought to repudiate its agreement with Buckley after trial in defendant's case. Our conclusion is reinforced by the fact that the trial court instructed the jury, before the start of the prosecution's case and after closing argument, that [e]very person who testifies under oath is a witness. (10)(See fn. 5.) You are the sole judges of the believability of a witness and the weight to be given to his testimony.... [5] (CALJIC No. 2.20.) (7d) We presume, in the absence of any contrary indication in the record, that the jury understood and followed this instruction. ( People v. Modesto (1963) 59 Cal.2d 722, 755 [31 Cal. Rptr. 225, 382 P.2d 33].) The prosecutor, in his opening statement, likewise emphasized the jurors' role as sole judges of credibility. In sum, the reading of Buckley's plea agreement did not constitute reversible error. [6]
(11) Buckley's credibility was the most significant issue in the guilt phase of defendant's trial. The prosecutor urged the jury to believe Buckley because, under the terms of his plea agreement, he had nothing to fear as long as he told the truth. Defendant contends that the prosecutor misled the jury as to Buckley's incentives to testify because the plea agreement said nothing about other crimes of which Buckley was suspected and failed to specify what, if any, arrangement Buckley had with the prosecutor regarding those crimes. This, defendant contends, denied him his rights to due process of law, to protection from cruel and unusual punishment, to freedom from arbitrary and unreliable imposition of the death penalty, and to trial by a fair and impartial jury. Apart from the Urell matter, defendant contends, Buckley was subject to prosecution for his role in (1) a commercial burglary and theft of motorcycles, (2) an assault with a vehicle in a parking lot, and (3) the murder of David Church. If there was an agreement with the prosecutor regarding these episodes, defendant reasons, it was never disclosed to the jury; if there was no such agreement, the jury never learned that Buckley had other incentives to testify against defendant. The flaw in defendant's argument is the absence of evidence that Buckley in fact feared prosecution for the other offenses. Nothing in the record indicates that Buckley was ever charged in connection with any of these crimes, and there is insufficient evidence before us to warrant the belief that prosecution was a reasonable probability. As to the motorcycle theft incident, Buckley admitted on cross-examination in the penalty phase that in the summer of 1986 he and Christopher Caldwell stole two motorcycles and that Caldwell was convicted of the offense, but that he himself was not charged. Defendant suggests no reason why his counsel could not have argued, at either phase of trial, that Buckley remained vulnerable to charges arising out of this incident. In any event, the record contains insufficient evidence to enable us to conclude that he feared prosecution. As to the parking lot incident, the record indicates that during the guilt phase of trial, defense counsel was aware that Buckley had been accused of trying to run down an individual in a parking lot, but that nothing had come of the incident. The trial court properly refused to allow counsel to use the evidence to impeach Buckley's testimony by showing that he had a violent character (Evid. Code, § 787), but permitted counsel to use it as impeachment in the event Buckley claimed to be a nonviolent person. Counsel did not bring up the subject by asking Buckley whether he hated violence or was sickened by seeing Urell beaten, so no evidence of the automobile assault came before the jury. As with the motorcycle incident, defense counsel was not precluded from attempting to present the evidence and arguing that Buckley was subject to prosecution, and the record lacks evidence from which we can confidently say Buckley could have been prosecuted. Finally, as to the murder of David Church, the evidence does not support the conclusion that Buckley was subject to prosecution. Evidence at the penalty phase indicated that defendant and Caldwell removed Church from Buckley's apartment and killed him with an ax handle. Defendant cites drug use during Buckley's party and Buckley's desire to rid himself of an obnoxious gatecrasher as possible motives for murder. He also notes that the murder weapon belonged to Buckley. The inference is far from compelling, however, that Buckley had reason to fear prosecution for Church's killing. [7] Defense counsel could have questioned Buckley during the guilt phase about his involvement in the Church murder, but for obvious tactical reasons chose not to do so. The lack of evidence that Buckley either feared prosecution for other crimes or had some undisclosed agreement regarding those offenses leads us to conclude that defendant has failed to prove that the prosecutor misled the jury. (12)(See fn. 8.) We also conclude  contrary to defendant's claim  that he was not denied due process, his rights of confrontation and cross-examination, his right to be protected against cruel and unusual punishment, his right to a reliable penalty determination, or his right to trial by a fair and impartial jury in the presentation of Buckley's plea agreement to the jury. [8]
Mel Rowan, testifying under a grant of immunity, provided significant corroborative evidence. While outlining Rowan's expected testimony during his opening statement, the prosecutor displayed a poster consisting of an enlarged page from the transcript of Rowan's preliminary hearing testimony containing incriminating statements defendant made to Rowan. The prosecutor read aloud the following portion of Rowan's preliminary hearing testimony: As the conversation took place, Mel Rowan asked Curtis Fauber, `You didn't hurt him, did you?' And Curtis said, `I think I killed him.' `Are you sure? You got to be kidding.' `Yeah, I'm pretty sure.' `Are you positive he's dead? Just don't tell me he's dead.' And Fauber said, `Well, when I left, he was having a hard time breathing.' `And I said, Well, why did you do it? And he said, `Well, he  he saw my face, and I'm not in any hurry to leave Ventura County.' Defense counsel objected to the form of the poster, specifically to highlighting of some portions. He contended it took parts of Rowan's preliminary hearing testimony out of context and was prejudicial to defendant. The trial court ruled that the poster could be used as an illustrative aid in the prosecutor's opening statement. (13) Defendant contends the ruling constituted error because the poster preconditioned the jury to believe Rowan's testimony. He also now advances the new ground that the poster contained hearsay and was for that additional reason improper. The error, he contends, violated his Fifth, Sixth, Eighth, and Fourteenth Amendment rights. We find no error in the trial court's ruling, as use of the poster neither violated the rule against hearsay nor constituted any species of vouching. The purpose of the opening statement `is to prepare the minds of the jury to follow the evidence and to more readily discern its materiality, force and effect' [citation].... ( People v. Green (1956) 47 Cal.2d 209, 215 [302 P.2d 307].) The use of photographs and tape recordings, intended later to be admitted in evidence, as visual or auditory aids is appropriate. ( Ibid.; People v. Kirk (1974) 43 Cal. App.3d 921, 929 [117 Cal. Rptr. 345].) Similarly, the illustrative use of an enlarged page of transcript was not improper, as Rowan ultimately testified consistently with the transcript. It is axiomatic that nothing the prosecutor says in an opening statement is evidence. Had the prosecutor, instead of preparing a poster, simply recited Rowan's preliminary hearing testimony in his opening statement to the jury, defendant could not urge a hearsay objection. Additionally, we cannot agree with defendant that the mere appearance of the poster could have been so official that it caused the jury to prejudge Rowan's credibility.
(14) Defendant contends that the prosecutor improperly emphasized Rowan's immunity in his guilt phase argument. The prosecutor said, Mel Rowan received immunity in this case. Mr. Farley [defense counsel] has told us that he has every motive to lie to you, but the fact remains that once Mel Rowan received that immunity, he could come up here and testify as to what happened during the course of those crimes and go completely protected from any prosecution. Defendant contends this argument was misleading because Rowan was obliged to testify consistently with his preliminary hearing testimony or risk prosecution for perjury. For the same reasons we rejected this argument as applied to Brian Buckley, we reject it as to Mel Rowan. (See, ante, at p. 826, fn. 8.) ( People v. Allen, supra, 42 Cal.3d at p. 1254.) Defendant relies on People v. Morris (1988) 46 Cal.3d 1 [249 Cal. Rptr. 119, 756 P.2d 843] for a contrary result, but that case is inapposite. In Morris, the prosecutor argued that the witness had received no benefit from testifying, and that the jury would have heard about it had any evidence of such a benefit existed. In fact, however, the witness had benefited from his preliminary hearing testimony, in that a parole violation and other charges had been favorably disposed of a year before trial. ( Id. at p. 33.) We noted that the nondisclosure rendered the prosecutor's argument misleading. We rejected the People's contention that the argument was accurate because the witness had received a benefit not for his trial testimony but for his preliminary hearing testimony: the witness, we noted, reasonably could have believed he owed an ongoing debt to the prosecution in return for his freedom. Here, by contrast, the prosecutor fully disclosed the benefit Rowan received. In any event, defense counsel was free to point out the possibility that Rowan might have been subject to perjury charges if he testified inconsistently with his preliminary hearing testimony.
Defendant unsuccessfully moved to suppress Buckley's testimony at trial, contending that the prosecutor's failure to tape-record an entire interview he conducted with Buckley interfered with defendant's access to information to be used for impeachment and cross-examination. After Buckley entered into his plea agreement, Don Glynn, the prosecutor, conducted an interview with him. Present with Buckley and Glynn were Wiksell, Buckley's attorney; Jarosz, Buckley's investigator; district attorney investigator Troxel; Deputy Sheriff Rudd; and Ventura County Sheriff's Detective Odle. Fauber's defense counsel had previously requested that the interview be taped. Wiksell too wished to tape-record the entire interview. Glynn, however, wanted to leave unrecorded the first part of the interview and tape only a summary. In order to obtain a disposition for his client, Wiksell did not object. Buckley's interview lasted two and one-half or three hours. One and one-half hours were taped, according to the trial judge, who listened to the tape. [9] Rudd, Odle, Troxel, and Glynn took notes of the interview; Troxel prepared a written report and destroyed his notes. During the unrecorded part of the interview, Buckley was asked broad questions, which he answered in narrative form, according to Wiksell. On a number of occasions, Buckley was unable to remember clearly who made a statement, but after some conversation was able to attribute it to a particular person. At least one fact concerning Buckley's personal background was discussed during the initial part of the interview but omitted during the taped portion: Buckley said he obtained a discharge from the Army by falsely stating he was a homosexual, but this statement does not appear in the recording. The taped portion of the interview was concise, lacking some of the hesitations evident in the unrecorded portion. Defendant moved to suppress Buckley's testimony at trial, contending that the prosecutor's refusal to tape the entire interview interfered with his access to information to be used for impeachment and cross-examination. At the hearing on the motion, the trial court stated it had listened to the tape and read Troxel's summary and the notes taken by Odle and Rudd. Comparing the notes with the tape, the trial court concluded that the tape was not a sanitized version of the earlier portion of the interview; rather, it covered generally the same topics in the same chronological order. The trial court also found that, in not taping the initial portion of the interview, the prosecution had followed a reasonable investigation procedure. The court reasoned that since the prosecution has no duty to tape-record witness interviews, and the defense has no right to dictate the course of the prosecution's investigation, the prosecutor was not required to grant defense counsel's request to tape Buckley's entire interview. (15a) Defendant characterizes the prosecutor's refusal to allow recording of the entire interview as a denial of his Fourteenth Amendment right to disclosure of all exculpatory evidence and as suppression of favorable evidence within the prohibition of California v. Trombetta (1984) 467 U.S. 479 [81 L.Ed.2d 413, 104 S.Ct. 2528]. Defendant also contends the prosecution did not act in good faith. ( Arizona v. Youngblood (1988) 488 U.S. 51 [102 L.Ed.2d 281, 109 S.Ct. 333].) He first suggests that the prosecutor should have turned on the tape recorder, or permitted Buckley's counsel to do so, at the beginning of the interview simply because defense counsel's request was timely and not burdensome. He does not, and cannot, cite direct authority for that proposition. Next, defendant contends that the prosecutor's actions were tantamount to willful suppression of evidence he knew would be helpful to the defense, and thus violated the rule of United States v. Agurs (1976) 427 U.S. 97, 111-113 [49 L.Ed.2d 342, 354-355, 96 S.Ct. 2392]. We cannot agree with defendant that hesitations and difficulties of recollection in the unrecorded portion of the interview amount to material, substantial evidence, the loss of which deprived him of a fair trial. ( People v. Ruthford (1975) 14 Cal.3d 399, 409 [121 Cal. Rptr. 261, 534 P.2d 1341, A.L.R.4th 3132].) (16) The mere possibility that an item of undisclosed information might have helped the defense, or might have affected the outcome of the trial, does not establish `materiality' in the constitutional sense. ( United States v. Agurs, supra, 427 U.S. at pp. 109-110 [49 L.Ed.2d at p. 353].) To meet this standard of constitutional materiality, evidence must both possess an exculpatory value that was apparent before the evidence was destroyed, and be of such a nature that the defendant would be unable to obtain comparable evidence by other reasonably available means. ( California v. Trombetta, supra, 467 U.S. at p. 489 [81 L.Ed.2d at p. 422].) (15b) Assuming, without deciding, that Trombetta applies in the context of a failure to tape-record a portion of an interview of a prosecution witness, we find no deprivation of material evidence. The trial court's finding that the substance of the taped and untaped portions of Buckley's statement was similar leads us to infer that the untaped portion did not possess apparent, independent exculpatory value. Defendant has essentially demonstrated only that a record of Buckley's unrecorded remarks might have helped him attack Buckley's credibility; consequently, he falls short of establishing materiality under the constitutional standard. In any event, defense counsel's cross-examination of Buckley elicited numerous instances of difficulty in recollection, a fact he pointed out in closing argument. Moreover, evidence of Buckley's hesitations was available through the testimony of persons present during the interview. We are unpersuaded that the loss of Buckley's untaped remarks resulted in error. [10]
(17) Defendant argues that the trial court improperly restricted cross-examination of Brian Buckley concerning the latter's involvement in an assault with an automobile. Defense counsel argued that if Buckley were to testify that he had an aversion to violence, then counsel should be allowed to impeach him with evidence that he had once attempted to run down an individual in a parking lot. As noted above, the trial court properly ruled the assault inadmissible if offered merely to establish a character trait of violence and thereby to invite the inference that Buckley behaved violently on the occasion of the Urell killing. However, the court ruled that the assault could be used to impeach Buckley's credibility depending on the content of his testimony. Thus, defense counsel was free to elicit from Buckley testimony as to his nonviolent nature and then to introduce evidence of the assault as impeachment. He did not do so. Defendant now urges that the fact that Buckley had never been prosecuted for the assault showed the willingness of the police and prosecutor to overlook his wrongdoings, which in turn showed Buckley's bias and willingness to testify for the prosecutor in the Urell case. He did not raise this ground of admissibility  which we find highly speculative in light of the paucity of evidence concerning the incident  at trial, and cannot be heard to do so for the first time on appeal. ( Lorenzana v. Superior Court (1973) 9 Cal.3d 626, 640 [108 Cal. Rptr. 585, 511 P.2d 33]; People v. Frye (1985) 166 Cal. App.3d 941, 950 [213 Cal. Rptr. 319].) In any event, since the jury was well aware of the terms under which Buckley was testifying, and in particular of the differential between the sentences for first and second degree murder, the jury was perforce aware of Buckley's bias and willingness to testify for the prosecution. We are unpersuaded that evidence of the parking lot incident would have had a significant impact on the jury's assessment of Buckley's credibility. ( People v. Belmontes (1988) 45 Cal.3d 744, 781 [248 Cal. Rptr. 126, 755 P.2d 310] [citing Delaware v. Van Arsdall (1986) 475 U.S. 673, 680 (89 L.Ed.2d 674, 680, 106 S.Ct. 1431)].) We cannot agree, therefore, with defendant's belated assertions that the trial court's ruling on the scope of Buckley's cross-examination deprived defendant of a trial by a fair and impartial jury, due process, or the right to confront witnesses, or that it subjected him to an arbitrarily or unreliably imposed sentence of death. (18a) Defendant contends counsel's failure to bring evidence of the assault before the jury constituted ineffective representation. (19) A defendant claiming ineffective assistance of counsel has the burden of showing that counsel failed to act in a manner to be expected of a reasonably competent attorney acting as a diligent advocate. ( People v. Pope (1979) 23 Cal.3d 412, 425 [152 Cal. Rptr. 732, 590 P.2d 859, 2 A.L.R.4th 1].) The defendant must also show that it is reasonably probable a determination more favorable to the defendant would have resulted in the absence of counsel's failings. ( People v. Ledesma (1987) 43 Cal.3d 171, 217-218 [233 Cal. Rptr. 404, 729 P.2d 839].) (18b) Defendant's ineffective-assistance claim fails because it is not reasonably probable a determination more favorable to him would have resulted had counsel brought the parking lot incident to the jury's attention. The jury was already aware of the terms under which Buckley was testifying, he was subjected to extensive cross-examination, and the probative value of the evidence counsel possessed was limited. As counsel explained it, [Buckley] got angry at an individual down by Chuck E. Cheese and tried to run him down with a car and was a suspect in a hit and run. The guy was a transient so nothing ever came of it. Because the incident counsel related does not support an inference that Buckley feared prosecution, we are unpersuaded the jury would have formed a significantly different impression of Buckley's credibility had defense counsel used it to impeach him.
(20) Defendant contends that the prosecutor engaged in misconduct during closing argument, and that the trial court's refusal to admonish the jury to disregard it was error. We conclude that the prosecutor's comments were not misconduct, and consequently that no admonition was needed. The principal thrust of defense counsel's closing argument was, of course, that the jury should not credit the testimony of Buckley and Rowan. He argued that each was more deeply involved in the Urell killing than he was willing to admit. He contended each had a selective memory of the events in question, and cited other reasons to disbelieve their testimony. In rebuttal, the prosecutor argued that defense counsel had failed to address certain points the prosecutor had emphasized in urging the jury to believe Buckley and Rowan. Defense counsel objected, calling the prosecutor's comments a personal attack. The trial court determined the comments were merely a rehash of the prosecutor's opening argument, directed to what defense counsel did not say, rather than what he did say, and thus were not proper rebuttal. The prosecutor acceded to the trial court's ruling. Later, the court declined to admonish the jury, saying I attribute again no bad faith and I really don't feel that there was a whole lot of harm, if any.... We find it clear that the prosecutor's repeated reference to defense counsel's failure to address various points in no way amounted to a personal attack on defense counsel, but was in the nature of a rhetorical device. The prosecutor did not accuse defense counsel of lying or misleading the jury; he merely pointed out omissions from the latter's argument. It hardly need be said that the prosecutor is entitled to comment on the content of defense counsel's argument. Since there was no prosecutorial misconduct, there was no basis for an admonition to the jury. (21) Defendant also contends the trial court should have admonished the jury to disregard a statement the prosecutor made concerning defense witness Frisilone. It will be recalled that Frisilone met Buckley in jail while the former was waiting to be sent to prison for the latest of his four felony convictions. Frisilone testified that Buckley said he had placed a pillow over Urell's head after defendant hit him with the ax. At trial, Buckley denied doing so. Defense counsel argued that Frisilone should be believed because he must have learned that detail from Buckley. The record reflects that the prosecutor countered: He [defense counsel] asked us how do we know  or how did Frisilone know what happened in the courtroom? [¶] Well, he told us that he read it in the newspapers. Defense counsel made a speaking objection, arguing that although Frisilone testified he had access to newspapers in jail, he did not say he had read about what he testified to. The court stated that it shared defense counsel's recollection of the testimony, but that the final word will be with the reporter, if the jury feels it's necessary for that portion of Mr. Frisilone's testimony to be read back. The prosecutor responded, perhaps inaccurately, that he did not say that [Frisilone] read any particular item, but he had access to the newspapers as to this trial. Later, the court declined to admonish the jury, finding the prosecutor had not acted in bad faith and no harm had been done. We cannot accept defendant's contention that the jury was left to suppose the prosecutor somehow knew, from extrajudicial evidence, that Frisilone had based his testimony on what he read in the newspaper. The exchange between court and counsel made it plain to the jury that the record of Frisilone's testimony would speak for itself. The prosecutor's implication that Frisilone had fabricated his testimony from items reported in the paper was, however, a fair inference from the evidence. The trial court's refusal to admonish the jury was not erroneous.
The trial court read a series of instructions on accomplice testimony, informing the jury that Brian Buckley was an accomplice as a matter of law and that his testimony required corroboration. [11] (CALJIC Nos. 3.10, 3.11, 3.12, 3.13, 3.14, 3.16, 3.18.) Defense counsel requested that the jury be instructed Mel Rowan, too, was an accomplice as a matter of law. The trial court refused, instead instructing the jury to decide Rowan's status. (22a) This, defendant contends, was error. (23) Section 1111 defines an accomplice as one who is liable to prosecution for the identical offense charged against the defendant on trial in the cause in which the testimony of the accomplice is given. (§ 1111.) In order to be chargeable with the identical offense, the witness must be considered a principal under section 31. ( People v. Hoover (1974) 12 Cal.3d 875, 879 [117 Cal. Rptr. 672, 528 P.2d 760].) That section defines principals to include [a]ll persons concerned in the commission of a crime ... whether they directly commit the act constituting the offense, or aid and abet in its commission, or, not being present, have advised and encouraged its commission .... (§ 31.) An accessory, however, is not liable to prosecution for the identical offense, and so is not an accomplice. ( People v. Hoover, supra, 12 Cal.3d at p. 879; § 32.) [12] Whether a person is an accomplice is a question of fact for the jury unless there is no dispute as to either the facts or the inferences to be drawn therefrom. ( People v. Tewksbury (1976) 15 Cal.3d 953, 960 [127 Cal. Rptr. 135, 544 P.2d 1335].) The burden is on the defendant to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that a witness is an accomplice. ( Id. at p. 963.) (22b) Although the testimony of both Rowan and Buckley indicated that Rowan participated in discussions preceding the burglary, pointed out to defendant and Buckley the location of the Urell residence and urged them either to do it at that moment or blow it off, and helped dispose of the robbery proceeds, to say that the inferences from these facts are undisputed would be an overstatement. ( People v. Tewksbury, supra, 15 Cal.3d at p. 960.) The record certainly supports, but does not dictate, the conclusion that Rowan acted with `guilty knowledge and intent with regard to the commission of the crime,' as is required for accomplice liability. ( Ibid. [quoting People v. Duncan (1960) 53 Cal.2d 803, 816 (3 Cal. Rptr. 351, 350 P.2d 103)].) As to the murder, there is no suggestion that Rowan had any prior knowledge; he expressed surprise when told of the killing. Even as to the burglary and robbery, the record does not compel a finding that Rowan shared liability as an accomplice. After the initial drive past Urell's residence, when Rowan urged defendant to do it or blow it off, it is not clear that Rowan knew when, how, or even if a burglary would in fact take place. Thus, defendant failed to sustain his burden of establishing Rowan's liability as an accomplice as a matter of law, and the trial court properly instructed the jury to decide the question. In any event, even if Rowan were an accomplice to the burglary and robbery, his testimony was adequately corroborated. (24) Corroborative evidence must come in by means of the testimony of a nonaccomplice witness. ( People v. Tewksbury, supra, 15 Cal.3d at p. 958.) It need not corroborate every fact to which the accomplice testified or establish the corpus delicti, but is sufficient if it tends to connect the defendant with the crime in such a way as to satisfy the jury that the accomplice is telling the truth. ( People v. Szeto (1981) 29 Cal.3d 20, 27 [171 Cal. Rptr. 652, 623 P.2d 213].) Corroborative evidence may be slight and entitled to little consideration when standing alone. ( Ibid.; People v. Wade (1959) 53 Cal.2d 322, 329 [1 Cal. Rptr. 683, 348 P.2d 116].) (22c) Rowan's testimony was corroborated by (1) Hal Simmons's testimony that defendant gave him a telephone credit card number which was proved to have belonged to Urell and (2) Investigator Velasquez's testimony that a search of the camper, owned by Brian Buckley's mother and used by defendant, yielded a book of maps stamped with the name and address of Urell's employer.
(25) Defendant complains that the jury was erroneously instructed on the requirement of intent to kill in connection with the robbery and burglary special circumstances. In People v. Anderson (1987) 43 Cal.3d 1104, 1141-1147 [240 Cal. Rptr. 585, 742 P.2d 1306], we overruled our earlier decision in Carlos v. Superior Court (1983) 35 Cal.3d 131 [197 Cal. Rptr. 79, 672 P.2d 862] and held that proof of intent to kill is not required under the provisions of section 190.2, subdivision (a)(17), when those provisions are read standing alone. When there is evidence from which the jury could find that defendant was an aider or abettor rather than the actual killer, however, the court must instruct the jury on intent to kill. (43 Cal.3d at pp. 1147, 1149-1150; § 190.2, subd. (b).) The murder in this case was committed after our decision in Carlos but before that in Anderson; consequently, the trial court had to instruct the jury that in order to find the special circumstance true it must find defendant intended to kill, whether it found he acted as a principal or as an aider or abettor. ( People v. Duncan (1991) 53 Cal.3d 955, 973, fn. 4 [281 Cal. Rptr. 273, 810 P.2d 131].) The jury was instructed that To find the special circumstance referred to in these instructions as murder in the commission of robbery or burglary is true, it must be proved, one, that the murder was committed while the defendant was engaged in, was an accomplice or an aider and abettor in the commission of a robbery or burglary; two, that the defendant intended to kill a human being or intended to aid another in the killing of a human being; three, that the murder was committed in order to carry out or advance the commission of the crimes of burglary or robbery or to facilitate the escape therefrom or to avoid detection. (CALJIC No. 8.81.17.) Defendant contends this instruction allowed the jury to find the special circumstance allegations true without clearly determining whether defendant intended to kill, and was therefore deficient. He interprets the instruction to permit a true finding if the jury merely believed defendant intended to help Buckley, such as by letting him into Urell's house, or holding his gun while Buckley struck Urell with the ax. We do not believe there is a reasonable likelihood that the jury would have understood the instruction as defendant interprets it. ( Estelle v. McGuire (1991) 502 U.S. ___, ___ 116 L.Ed.2d 385, 399, 112 S.Ct. 475.) In order to find true the special circumstance allegations, the jury had to find that the defendant intended to kill a human being or intended to aid another in the killing of a human being. As defendant reads the instruction, the phrase in the killing of a human being is reduced to a parenthesis, or ignored. We have previously upheld a similar instruction in People v. Warren (1988) 45 Cal.3d 471, 486-488 [247 Cal. Rptr. 172, 754 P.2d 218], and subsequent cases (see, e.g., People v. Pinholster (1992) 1 Cal.4th 865, 954-955 [4 Cal. Rptr.2d 765, 824 P.2d 571]). In essence, defendant's argument is a disagreement with Warren. He presents us, however, with no convincing reason to depart from that decision. [13] Defendant contends that the instructions on liability for aiding and abetting further diminished the possibility that the jurors would appreciate the intent requirement for the special circumstance allegation, and that certain portions of the prosecutor's argument made that improper outcome more probable. To the contrary, we do not believe it reasonably likely that either the instruction on aiding and abetting or the argument would have had such an effect. His claims of error in the giving of the intent-to-kill and aiding-and-abetting instructions must, therefore, be rejected.
(26) During its deliberations, the jury asked for a rereading of two pages of Mel Rowan's testimony. Defense counsel stipulated that the court reporter could enter the jury deliberation room with the transcript and read the two pages to the jury. The court reporter did so. Defendant was not present. He now contends this procedure deprived him of a complete record of the proceedings, in violation of section 190.9. [14] He further argues that trial counsel's stipulation denied him his rights of confrontation and representation by competent counsel. In his reply brief, he adds that he thereby lost his rights to meaningful appellate review of his death sentence and to be free from a death sentence arbitrarily and unreliably imposed. His contentions are without merit. Although the record contains no personal waiver of presence during the rereading, defendant has failed to show that his absence in any way prejudiced him or resulted in the denial of a fair and impartial trial. Unless defendant makes such a showing, his absence from a rereading of testimony does not raise due process concerns. ( People v. Ainsworth, supra, 45 Cal.3d at p. 1021.) Finally, failing any prejudice, there can be neither a denial of effective representation nor impairment of Eighth Amendment rights. Defendant acknowledges these principles, but argues that he should be relieved of the burden of establishing prejudice. He articulates no persuasive reasons to reject our precedents.
(27) Defendant argues that jury misconduct occurring in both phases of the trial deprived him of due process, a fair trial by an impartial jury, a unanimous verdict, and protection against arbitrary and unreliable imposition of a death judgment. The trial court rejected defendant's claims of prejudicial misconduct in ruling on his motion for new trial. (§ 1181, subd. 3.) Our review of the record supports the trial court's determination. Defendant's first claim of misconduct centers on the fact that during both phases of the trial, a juror brought a cellular telephone into the deliberation room. Before doing so, the juror sought permission from the bailiff, who approved the request in order to accommodate the juror's need to contact his office periodically. The bailiff testified he asked the trial judge before giving approval, although the judge did not recall the request. The juror used the telephone during recesses and breaks, mainly to make business calls. Two other jurors used the telephone, one to check on her child and the other to cancel an appointment. There was no indication that the case or any subject relating to it was ever discussed on the telephone. At the outset, we express in no uncertain terms our disapproval of the practice of allowing a cellular telephone into the jury deliberation room. Such a practice carries with it obvious potential for mischief, against which section 1128 seeks to guard. [15] That said, however, we do not find misconduct on these facts. The juror brought the telephone into the deliberation room only after he believed he had permission to do so, and defendant offers no evidence to suggest either that the telephone was ever used for an improper purpose or that its presence distracted jurors. No presumption of prejudice, therefore, arises. (See People v. Holloway (1990) 50 Cal.3d 1098, 1108 [269 Cal. Rptr. 530, 790 P.2d 1327].) (28) Defendant next claims misconduct in the form of sexual harassment by a male juror of a female juror. At the hearing on the new trial motion, the female juror testified that once, in the crowded deliberation room, a male juror placed a hand on her rib cage as he squeezed past her. She was wearing a cropped shirt, and his hand accidentally slipped underneath the shirt. She did not feel he had made a pass at her. She told a defense investigator she felt uncomfortable being alone in the room with the juror, but she testified she would have felt uncomfortable being alone with any of the other jurors. The evidence defendant offered entirely fails to establish sexual harassment. Even if it did rise to the level of harassment, defendant fails to cite any evidence indicating the incident might have interfered with the female juror's participation in deliberations. (29) Finally, defendant contends that prejudicial misconduct occurred during deliberations when several jurors related personal anecdotes concerning drug use. Defendant submitted declarations by two jurors stating that another juror commented on his son's past use of drugs and opined that the memory of some of the witnesses may have been affected by drug use; that another juror said he had used drugs in his youth; and that a third juror mentioned he had a family member who was an alcoholic. These comments, defendant urges, showed that the jurors relied on extrajudicial information relating to the issues pending before them. He observes that drug use was a recurrent theme at trial, and that questions of witness credibility permeated the case. He contends he suffered prejudice if even a single juror used extrajudicial information regarding drug use and its effect on the ability to recall events. We find defendant's argument unpersuasive. He does not attempt to show how the jurors' statements regarding drug and alcohol use by family members might relate to any of the issues in this case, and no connection is apparent. None of the cited statements therefore rises to the level of misconduct. Jurors bring to their deliberations knowledge and beliefs about general matters of law and fact that find their source in everyday life and experience. That they do so is one of the strengths of the jury system. It is also one of its weaknesses: it has the potential to undermine determinations that should be made exclusively on the evidence introduced by the parties and the instructions given by the court. Such a weakness, however, must be tolerated. `[I]t is an impossible standard to require ... [the jury] to be a laboratory, completely sterilized and freed from any external factors.' ( Rideau v. Louisiana (1963) 373 U.S. 723, 733 [10 L.Ed.2d 663, 669, 83 S.Ct. 1417] (dis. opn. of Clark, J.).) ( People v. Marshall (1990) 50 Cal.3d 907, 950 [269 Cal. Rptr. 269, 790 P.2d 676].) To say, for example, that the memory of some of the witnesses may have been affected by drugs is to say no more than the common knowledge that ingestion of drugs affects perception. Jurors cannot be expected to shed their backgrounds and experiences at the door of the deliberation room. Defendant does not persuade us that any of the jurors' statements could adversely have affected the verdict.