Opinion ID: 1372628
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Claim of Improper Rebuttal.

Text: (40) Defendant also maintains that Dr. Soltz's testimony was improper rebuttal insofar as it reflected on defendant's character and his lack of remorse. We treat the first contention on the merits, for as we have explained, defendant raised it at trial. Defendant's penalty phase witness, Dr. Rath, testified that the murders were out of character. The implication was that defendant, though troubled, was not as violent as the crimes would suggest. The prosecution was entitled to try to undermine defendant's claim of good character with expert testimony that the crimes were in character. ( People v. Mitcham, supra, 1 Cal.4th 1027, 1071-1072; People v. Fierro (1991) 1 Cal.4th 173, 237 [3 Cal. Rptr.2d 426, 821 P.2d 1302].) (41) We understand defendant to claim that by eliciting Dr. Soltz's statement, the prosecutor unconstitutionally called attention to defendant's failure to testify at trial. ( Griffin v. California, supra, 380 U.S. 609, 615 [14 L.Ed.2d 106, 110].) Defendant, however, did not object on any ground to Dr. Soltz's statement that defendant appeared to show no remorse, much less on the ground of Griffin. And we discern no reason to conclude that an objection and subsequent admonition by the court to the jury would not have cured any harm. Therefore we will not consider on appeal defendant's contentions that the testimony was improper rebuttal under state law and amounted to a violation of due process of law. ( People v. Mincey, supra, 2 Cal.4th 408, 446.)