Court Opinion

ID: 9633557
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-22 11:52:21.618679+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:08:37.339606
License: Public Domain

Hunter, J.
(dissenting) — I first address myself to the dissent of Judge Hill. The dissent vacates the death pen*32alty and remands the case to the trial court for the imposition of a life sentence. There is no statutory or case law permitting such a procedure in this state. The imposition of punishment, in the event of a finding of premeditated homicide, is solely within the province of the jury. RCW 9.48.030. The jury’s determination on the question of the defendant’s guilt and punishment in such a case is a part and parcel of the same proceeding, and cannot be determined in separate trials. Criminal cases cannot be tried piecemeal. If the defendant had been denied due process of law in the consideration of the penalty, he would have been denied a fair trial, and the case must then be remanded for a new trial on all issues charged in the information.
Addressing my remarks to the majority opinion, I am in disagreement. I believe that the reasoning in the recent case of the United States Supreme Court in Robinson v. California, 370 U. S. 660, 8 L. Ed. (2d) 758, 82 S. Ct. 1417 (1962) is controlling here. The case holds that to punish a person who is not responsible for his condition, where there is no culpability, constitutes cruel and unusual punishment in violation of the eighth and fourteenth amendments to the United States Constitution.
It was the contention of the defendant’s counsel that by reason of the defendant’s diseased mind he was incapable of controlling his conduct when he committed the criminal acts for which he was charged; that there was no mens rea, or guilty mind; that there was no culpability; and that the defendant is being punished for conduct over which he had no control.- The psychiatric testimony was virtually undisputed that by reason of a diseased mind the defendant was incapable of control over his conduct. Consideration of this testimony in determining guilt or innocence was ruled out by the trial court’s instruction that this issue must be determined on whether the defendant -knew the difference between right and wrong when he committed the criminal acts.'
For the above reasons, and as stated in detail in my dissent in State v. White, 60 Wn. (2d) 551, 374 P. (2d) 942 (1962), *33I believe the defendant was not afforded a fair trial; that he was denied due process of law under both the state and federal constitutions; that under the reasoning of the Robinson case, supra, had the jury found the defendant could not control his conduct by reason of a diseased mind, the imposition of punishment would have contravened the eighth amendment to the United States Constitution prohibiting cruel and unusual punishment. Robinson v. California, supra.
The case should be remanded for a new trial.