Court Opinion

ID: 9545895
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-07 17:21:44.088157+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T15:15:41.811660
License: Public Domain

RICHARDSON, J.
I concur in the majority opinion to the extent that it affirms defendant’s conviction of first degree murder, burglary and robbery. I respectfully dissent, however, from the majority’s reversal as to penalty. In my view, the trial court very properly sentenced defendant to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.
The 1978 death penalty law explicitly and unambiguously provides that “[t]he penalty for a defendant found guilty of murder in the first degree shall be death or confinement in state prison for a term of life without the possibility of parole in any case in which one or more . .. special circumstances has been charged and specially found ....” (Pen. Code, § 190.2, subd. (a), italics added.) Despite the mandatory language of section 190.2, the majority now concludes that trial courts may impose a lesser sentence of life imprisonment with possibility of parole merely by striking, that is ignoring, the jury’s finding of special circumstances. Yet, there is nothing in the language or history of the 1978 death penalty law which indicates that the trial courts were vested with any such broad power to remove the jury’s express finding. To the contrary, the clear intent of the framers of that law, and of the sovereign people of this state, as well, who by initiative enacted it, was to impose a mandatory sentence of death or life imprisonment without pa*493role “in any case” of first degree murder accompanied by a finding of special circumstances.
The majority’s rationale is as follows: Trial courts are vested with a general power to dismiss an action in furtherance of justice (Pen. Code, § 1385); “Section 1385 permits dismissals in the interest of justice in any situation where the Legislature has not specifically indicated a contrary intent” (ante, p. 482; see also p. 483); because the 1978 death penalty law does not “specifically” withhold the power to dismiss a special circumstances finding such a power may be exercised “in a careful and thoughtful manner.” (Ante, p. 489.)
Such reasoning is faulty. First of all, the majority’s statement of the applicable rule of statutory construction is directly contrary to our own recent holdings in People v. Tanner (1979) 24 Cal.3d 514, 518-520 [156 Cal.Rptr. 450, 596 P.2d 328], and Rockwell v. Superior Court (1976) 18 Cal.3d 420, 442-443 [134 Cal.Rptr. 650, 556 P.2d 1101], In each of these cases, the applicable statutes imposed specific penalties for particular crimes without any express withholding of the power to dismiss or reduce those penalties under section 1385. Nevertheless, in both cases we held that, based upon the mandatory statutory language imposing the penalties and the applicable legislative history, we could clearly infer an intent to preclude application of the dismissal power under section 1385.
Thus, in Tanner the Legislature, without mentioning section 1385, had provided that probation “shall not be granted” to any person using a firearm during a robbery. (Pen. Code, § 1203.06.) We held that “While the Legislature has not assisted us in discerning its intent, we must conclude that when proper findings invoking the operation of section 1203.06 have been made, the mandatory provisions of that section may not be avoided by employing section 1385 to strike either the allegations of the complaint or the findings of the jury.” (P. 519, italics added.) Vainly, the dissenting opinion of Justice Tobriner urged that “in the absence of an explicit legislative restriction of the section 1385 power” we could not infer any intent to restrict that power. (P. 531, italics in original.) This is precisely the position taken now by the present majority, and we rejected it two years ago.
Rockwell is even closer on point, involving as it did interpretation of the penalty provisions of a death penalty law comparable in all perti*494nent respects to the 1978 law which is under present scrutiny. In Rockwell, the 1973 death penalty law imposed a mandatory penalty of death for first degree murder accompanied by specified special circumstances. (Former Pen. Code, § 190.) The 1973 act was silent regarding the trial courts’ power to dismiss a special circumstances finding or to reduce the penalty otherwise prescribed, and the contention was raised, identical to that now adopted by the present majority, that section 1385 might be invoked “in the interest of justice if mitigating circumstances suggest that the death penalty is not an appropriate punishment.” (18 Cal. 3d, at p. 441.) We flatly and unanimously rejected the argument, employing in the words of Chief Justice Wright an analysis that is fully applicable here: “We have not heretofore had occasion to consider whether this power to strike allegations in an accusatory pleading extends to the integrated statutory scheme for imposition of the death penalty established by sections 190 through 190.3. The language of those sections, the omission therefrom of any provision for a hearing on mitigating circumstances, and the history of their adoption lead us to conclude that this would be contrary to the legislative purpose. The Legislature did not intend the jury verdict on special circumstances to be merely advisory, but contemplated death as a mandatory penalty whenever special circumstances were found unless precluded by section 190.3.” (P. 442, italics added.)
The majority herein does not purport to overrule either Tanner or Rockwell, but rather attempts to distinguish those cases on their facts. Accordingly, despite the majority’s incorrect recital of the applicable rule of statutory construction (requiring a “specific” or “explicit” reference to § 1385), the analysis contained in those cases survives today’s ill-considered ruling, and I reaffirm our Tanner and Rockwell analysis in considering the issue before us.
As I have noted, in Rockwell we focused upon (1) the mandatory language of the penalty provision, (2) the omission of any reference therein to section 1385 or similar dismissal provision, and (3) the applicable legislative history.
1. Mandatory language. In Rockwell, we stressed that the 1973 act required that a person found guilty of first degree murder “shall suffer death” (former § 190), “shall suffer the penalty of death” (id., § 190.1), and “the penalty .. . shall be death” (id., § 190.2), where special circumstances are found. (P. 442.) We further observed that the 1973 act *495contained an “integrated statutory scheme” with “detailed procedures” whereby special circumstances are to be charged and tried, including a provision that if two successive juries have been unable to reach a unanimous verdict regarding the special circumstances charge, the court shall dismiss the jury and impose the punishment of life imprisonment. (Ibid.) We emphasized that “The Legislature gave the court the power to impose a sentence of life imprisonment only in this instance.” (Ibid.) We concluded that “These detailed provisions governing the manner by which special circumstances are to be charged and found lead to the conclusion that sections 190 through 190.3 are special legislation and that the court presently has no power under the general grant of authority of section 1385 to strike special circumstances allegations in the interest of justice as an exercise of mercy. [Citations.]” (P. 443, italics added.)
Similarly, the 1978 act involved here also uses mandatory language substantially identical to the 1973 act. The 1978 act provided that “The penalty for a defendant found guilty of murder in the first degree shall be death or confinement in state prison for a term of life without the possibility of parole in any case in which one or more . . . special circumstances has been charged and specially found ... to be true.” (§ 190.2, subd. (a), italics added.) Like the 1973 act, the present statutory scheme contains an integrated and detailed procedure for charging and trying special circumstances. (§§ 190.1-190.4.) Once again, as in the 1973 act, the sole authorization for a reduced sentence arises after two successive juries are unable to reach a unanimous verdict as to the special circumstances charge. (§ 190.4, subd. (a).) The multiple and direct parallels between the statutory scheme interpreted by us in Rockwell and the 1978 act are simply inescapable. Logic and common sense dictate that they should receive parallel construction.
2. Omission of reference to section 1385. In Rockwell, we noted that no provision in the 1973 act affirmatively “suggests that the court which has made such a [special circumstances] finding may then strike the allegation it has found true and avoid the command that the death penalty be imposed.” (P. 443.) Likewise, nothing whatever in the 1978 act suggests such a power. Section 190.4, subdivision (e), explicitly authorizes the trial court to review the jury’s penalty determination and to modify a verdict or finding imposing the death penalty whenever the verdict or finding as to penalty is contrary to the law or evidence presented. Yet no similar authority is granted to modify or strike a jury’s *496finding of special circumstances. This omission strongly suggests an intention to withhold that power.
3. Legislative history. In Rockwell, our conclusion regarding the non-applicability of section 1385 was supported by the available legislative history of the 1973 act which indicated an intent to preclude any discretionary consideration of mitigating circumstances in deciding the penalty issue. (P. 443.) The 1978 act was adopted as an initiative measure, and the ballot handbook and arguments afford an illuminating view of the intent of the framers of that initiative, and of the people who voted in its favor. (See Amador Valley Joint Union High Sch. Dist. v. State Bd. of Equalization (1978) 22 Cal.3d 208, 245-246 [149 Cal.Rptr. 239, 583 P.2d 1281], approving consideration of such materials.)
It is significant, in my view, that the legislative analyst’s commentary which was given to the voters before the election states that the 1978 measure would “expand and modify the list of special circumstances which require either the death penalty or life without the possibility of parole.” (Ballot Pamp., Gen. Elec. (Nov. 7, 1978) p. 32, italics added.) There is absolutely no mention made of any trial court power to dismiss or strike a special circumstances finding “in the furtherance of justice.” Equally significant is the argument in favor of the initiative measure which stresses to the voters that the measure will provide a “new, tough death penalty law,” and indeed “the nation’s toughest, most effective death penalty law.” (Id., at p. 34.) It is exceedingly doubtful that those who approved the initiative measure (72 percent in favor and 28 percent opposed; see People v. Teron (1979) 23 Cal.3d 103, 124-125 [151 Cal.Rptr. 633, 588 P.2d 773] (dis. opn.)) reasonably anticipated that the seemingly mandatory penalties for first degree murder with special circumstances could be so readily reduced or modified at the discretion of a trial judge by the simple process of striking the jury’s special circumstances finding. To the contrary, following such a finding, the trial judge’s sole discretion under the act affects the penalty only, and only to the extent of authorizing imposition of life without possibility of parole in the place of the death penalty.
For all of the foregoing reasons, in my opinion, the majority seriously errs in reading into the 1978 law an implied authority to dismiss or strike a special circumstances finding. This is not what the people of this state thought they were approving when they adopted the 1978 ini*497tiatiye, and this most assuredly is not what we said when we interpreted section 1385 in Tanner and the death penalty statutes in Rockwell.
Accordingly, I would affirm the judgment in its entirety.
Kaus, J., concurred.
The petitions of both parties for a rehearing were denied February 3, 1982. Richardson, J., was of the opinion that the petitions should be granted.