Court Opinion

ID: 9738218
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-26 19:45:20.160981+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:24:04.524677
License: Public Domain

PETERS, P. J., concurring.
I concur in the conclusion contained in the majority opinion, but not in the reasons given for that conclusion. The majority opinion holds that the prosecuting officer was not guilty of misconduct in asking the question of the officer concerning the admissions made by defendant to him relating to his occupation. It is held that it does not appear from the record that the prosecutor can be charged with deliberately trying to get inadmissible evidence before the jury. I cannot agree with that construction of the record. The question asked of the officer was, “What did you say and what did he say in regard to what *288his occupation was?” The answer was, “I asked him where he had last been employed and he told me that he was unable to work, he had been a thief all his life, since 9 years old.” Obviously, the question called for the entire conversation concerning the occupation of the defendant, and just as obviously the answer was responsive to that question. The reference to the fact that the defendant is supposed to have said that “he had been a thief all his life, since 9 years old” clearly is responsive to the question concerning the defendant’s occupation. It is also perfectly clear to me, the answer being responsive to the question, that the prosecutor, as a matter of law, is chargeable with knowledge of the answer the witness was going to give. The witness was the prosecution’s witness. Under such circumstances, the law is clear that the prosecutor is chargeable, as a matter of law, with knowledge of the responsive answers to questions asked by him.
The attorney general concedes the law to be that the character of a defendant cannot be attacked unless he puts his character into issue by producing character witnesses. That is undoubtedly the law. (People v. Arlington, 123 Cal. 356 [55 Pac. 1003] ; People v. Adams, 76 Cal. App. 178 [244 Pac. 106] ; People v. Wells, 100 Cal. 459 [34 Pac. 1078] ; People v. Wong Loung, 159 Cal. 520 [114 Pac. 829].) It, therefore, follows that in this case it must be held that the prosecutor deliberately attempted to get the bad character of the defendant before the jury when that issue was not before the court. Such tactics should not be condoned. The defendant is entitled to a fair trial, and cannot be convicted simply because he may be a bad man or may have a bad record. It is the duty of prosecuting officials to protect the rights of the defendant, and certainly they have no lawful right to invade intentionally such rights.
It is my opinion, therefore, that the prosecutor in this case was guilty of deliberate misconduct in asking the question for the purpose of eliciting an improper answer. That was error, but not every error requires a reversal. Here the record shows that the trial judge struck the improper evidence from the record, and instructed the jury not to consider stricken evidence for any purpose. While that will not, in all cases, cure the error, it cannot be held in the present case that after an examination of the entire record “the error complained of has resulted in a miscarriage of justice” within the meaning, of art. VI, See. 4% of the Constitution. In *289the present case the defendant admitted that he had served three prior terms for similar offenses. His criminal career admittedly started in 1922 when he was but eighteen years of age. In view of the fact that the improper evidence was stricken and the jury properly instructed to disregard such evidence, and, in view of the evidence properly in the record, it cannot be said, under the circumstances, that there has been a miscarriage of justice as a result of the error under consideration.