In eight of these crimes, property later was recovered that had been stolen from the victim's residence. The court viewed hours of videotape recordings of television news broadcasts. This fact shall have no bearing upon your determination of the defendant's guilt or innocence. She fell to the ground and lay still while defendant entered the condominium. at p. 989, 39 Cal.Rptr.2d 607, 891 P.2d 153. They struggled as the car moved and struck a chimney. Okazaki's roommate, Maria Hernandez, was shown a photographic lineup that did not include defendant's photograph, and she said one of the photographs resembled her attacker. The trial court did not err in failing to admit all of the evidence submitted by defendant in support of his motion for change of venue. at p. 597, fn. But jury selection in the present case commenced on July 21, 1988, using prospective jurors summoned using the new master jury list for the 1988-1989 fiscal year. After finding prints on a stolen car and releasing a mugshot to the public, Ramirez was apprehended after he was subdued by a group of residents and was beaten before cops could step in. The bedroom had been ransacked. Gun sales tripled, returning to normal after defendant's arrest. omitted.). Discover Even More I am beyond good and evil. [Citation. The Court: Do you understand it is not the court's desire in any way to change any of the terms of this contract; it is only my desire to make sure you understand those terms and any potential problems that these terms may create; all I want to know is that you do understand? ] (People v. Ewoldt, supra, 7 Cal.4th 380, 402, 27 Cal.Rptr.2d 646, 867 P.2d 757.). Defendant challenges the sufficiency of the evidence to support his conviction of the second degree murder of Tsai-Lian Yu, asserting that the evidence is insufficient to establish malice because it does not establish that he intended to kill Yu and, if he did, that he did not act in the heat of passion, or upon a sudden quarrel, or in unreasonable self-defense. (People v. Young (2005) 34 Cal.4th 1149, 1225, 24 Cal.Rptr.3d 112, 105 P.3d 487; People v. Barnett (1998) 17 Cal.4th 1044, 1180, 74 Cal.Rptr.2d 121, 954 P.2d 384; People v. Cain (1995) 10 Cal.4th 1, 68, 40 Cal.Rptr.2d 481, 892 P.2d 1224. ] (People v. Maury, supra, 30 Cal.4th 342, 395, 133 Cal.Rptr.2d 561, 68 P.3d 1. His dad treated him poorly he would tie him to a cross in a graveyard overnight as a form of punishment. A defendant is mentally incompetent for purposes of this chapter if, as a result of mental disorder or developmental disability, the defendant is unable to understand the nature of the criminal proceedings or to assist counsel in the conduct of a defense in a rational manner. (1367, subd. L[.] As defendant drove past Gallegos, Gallegos could see his profile and noted the license number of defendant's vehicle. Defendant asserts that the trial court repeatedly was made aware of counsel's conflicts and difficulties in communicating with their client, citing instances in which either defendant failed to cooperate with his attorneys or his attorneys failed to appear for trial. They entered and found Vincent Zazzara lying dead on the couch in the den. As noted above, defendant was arrested on August 31, 1985. 8.85, the prosecutor told the jury: You may consider those crimes [of which defendant was convicted] in aggravation in determining penalty in this case only once; you can't consider them in section a and section b. In addition, in the County of Los Angeles no juror shall be required to serve at a distance greater than 20 miles from his or her residence. (Stats.1980, ch. After Maxine died, Richard mutilated her body with a knife and gouged out her eyes. Defendant objected to, and moved to quash, the master list of jurors drawn for use in the 1987-1988 fiscal year. Defendant made Carol K. and her son lie on the floor and covered them with a sheet. In essence, defendant's claim is premature. I think to give this instruction would be error and I'm going to ask you to withdraw it. ] (Id. WebBorn In: Plainfield, New Jersey, United States 19 2 Musicians #1201 Quick Facts Died At Age: 51 Family: Spouse/Ex-: Nenette Zazzara father: Harry mother: Mary Evans siblings: Harry Evans (Harold) Born Country: United States American Men New Jersey Musicians Died on: September 15, 1980 place of death: Fort Lee, New Jersey, United States 503, 781 P.2d 537, fn. Defendant's confidence in his lawyer is vital to his defense. Accordingly, the court's instruction to consider defendant's age, without further elaboration, was sufficient in this case. Former Code of Civil Procedure section 203 stated at that time: Each court shall adopt rules supplementary to such rules as may be adopted by the Judicial Council, governing the selection of persons to be listed as available for service as trial jurors. She had a puncture wound in her head, two black eyes, and her face was bruised. The Defendant: I don't want to go to no hospital, Ma'am.. ] (People v. Cleveland (2001) 25 Cal.4th 466, 475, 106 Cal.Rptr.2d 313, 21 P.3d 1225.) On January 30, 1989, the court again asked defendant whether he preferred wearing a leg brace that would not be visible to the jury, rather than leg chains. It is implied, when no considerable provocation appears, or when the circumstances attending the killing show an abandoned and malignant heart. (188.) [M]ore is required to raise a doubt [as to a defendant's competence] than mere bizarre actions [citation] or bizarre statements [citation] or statements of defense counsel that defendant is incapable of cooperating in his defense [citation] or psychiatric testimony that defendant is immature, dangerous, psychopathic, or homicidal or such diagnosis with little reference to defendant's ability to assist in his own defense [citation]. (People v. Laudermilk, supra, 67 Cal.2d 272, 285, 61 Cal.Rptr. There is no provision for a secret disclosure of counsel's feelings. Investigators identified him as an enraged killer because of how viciously his victims had been killed: in one case, the victim, Patty Higgins, was slashed and stabbed in the throat. Contrary to defendant's assertion, the trial court in the present case did not find that Daniel Hernandez and Arturo Hernandez were unqualified to be retained as counsel by defendant. The court invited defendant to request to speak to an independent attorney if at any time in the future you change your mind.. Further, the jury commissioner adopted a suggestion by defendant that significantly increased the representation of Hispanics on this new master list. Defendant asserted that unsequestered voir dire increased the juror's exposure to prejudicial pretrial publicity. Defendant contends that this violated his rights under the Fifth, Sixth, Eighth, and Fourteenth Amendments to the federal Constitution. We have conducted extensive investigations of the case with him. [T]he reviewing court must independently examine the record and determine de novo whether a fair trial is or was obtainable. [Citation.] On August 21, 1989, defendant filed a motion to voir dire the jurors regarding their reactions to the death of Juror Singletary. ] (Ibid.) We have also stated, however, that a juror's inability to perform as a juror must appear in the record as a demonstrable reality. [Citation.]' The house had been ransacked. Police recovered fingerprints from the screen found on the living room floor that later were identified as defendant's fingerprints. Conflicts of interest may arise in various factual settings. Arturo Hernandez: We understand fully; and, for the record, we have indicated to the court in the past that at this point we anticipate no conflict of interest. At FindLaw.com, we pride ourselves on being the number one source of free legal information and resources on the web. On May 31, 1988, the trial court denied defendant's motion to quash the jury venire. He has remembered things I have said at prior hearings and reported them back to me. The court stated it had no doubts about defendant's competency, and defendant interrupted the court to state: I am sane. Arturo Hernandez added that he and cocounsel have been visiting with Mr. Ramirez for a lengthy period of time. The photographs at issue here are gruesome because the charged offenses were gruesome, but they did no more than accurately portray the shocking nature of the crimes. He handcuffed Sakina A. to a doorknob, threatening to return and kill her, her three-year-old son, and her infant child if she called the police. 630, 774 P.2d 659, defendant is entitled to relief only if he can actually show that his right to an impartial jury was affected because he was deprived of a peremptory challenge which he would have used to excuse a juror who sat on his case. Unless, in addition to exhausting his peremptory challenges, the defendant expresses dissatisfaction with the jury ultimately selected, we cannot know whether the earlier denial of the challenge for cause deprived the defendant of a peremptory challenge that he or she would have used to excuse a juror who sat on his case. Ramirez was accused of entering a home in Orange County and slaying someone there.I have not learned anything about this case. [E]very brief should contain a legal argument with citation of authorities on the points made. 608-223-0017. At defendant's request, the court ordered that the brace be replaced by leg chains. The Court: Did you read the entire contract? Ramirez is now known to have had extremely bad teeth, and in the stolen car, they found a business card for a dentists office. The Defendant: It exists, but I feel there will be no conflict. The Court Okay. The court appropriately released the jury the day it learned of the juror's murder and resumed deliberations the following day only after observing the jurors' demeanor and inquiring of the jury foreperson whether the jury was ready to resume deliberations. The trial court denied the defendant's motion for a change of venue, and the defendant was convicted and sentenced to death. They never were able to find the shoes after that. Defendant again chose to wear the leg chains. Sakina A. untied her son, called in vain for her husband, and screamed for help. She did not lose consciousness, but lay still. Defendant argues that these instructions, coupled with the prosecutor's argument that the jury should consider each of these murders in turn, the first degree murders, and each of the special circumstances in turn, and make a decision on each one, impermissibly invited the jury to double-count the special circumstances, in violation of our decision in People v. Melton (1988) 44 Cal.3d 713, 768-769, 244 Cal.Rptr. (People v. Braxton (2004) 34 Cal.4th 798, 813, 22 Cal.Rptr.3d 46, 101 P.3d 994; see also People v. Anderson (2001) 25 Cal.4th 543, 599, fn. Broadly, they embrace all situations in which an attorney's loyalty to, or efforts on behalf of, a client are threatened by his responsibilities to another client or a third person or by his own interests.' [Citation.] The trial court correctly recognized that the defendant has the right to retained counsel of his choice. (Ante, at p. 696, 139 P.3d at p. One of the only trails investigators had was a shoe print he left in a flower bed in one of his earlier murders. As noted above, both the prosecution and the defense elected not to present any additional evidence at the penalty phase. Whether the trial court erred in admitting into evidence the challenged photographs of the murder victims depends upon two factors: (1) whether the photographs were relevant, and (2) whether the trial court abused its discretion in determining that the probative value of each photograph outweighed its prejudicial effect. You probably know how vicious his crimes were but the true-crime series delves deeply into how bloody and gory they really were. Copyright 2023, Thomson Reuters. He was a student, Salerno said in the documentary. The victims' daughter later identified several pieces of her parents' jewelry that police had recovered from Felipe Solano, who had purchased them from defendant. Defendant contends the trial court erred in failing to instruct the jury that it must determine the proper penalty beyond a reasonable doubt. Although the trial court overruled defendant's objection and ruled there was no significant disparity in the percentage of Hispanics, the office of the jury commissioner adopted defendant's request to improve the method by which duplicate names were eliminated, which resulted in a significant increase in the percentage of Hispanics on the new master jury list that was used to select defendant's jury. Her throat had been slashed almost from ear to ear. It appeared she may have been sexually assaulted. She screamed and her neighbor, Jose Burjoin, responded and ordered defendant to leave. Peter Zazzara's father Vincent and step-mom Maxine were brutally murdered by Richard Ramirez in their ranch-style home in Whittier, Los Angeles, on March 27, The prosecution presented the testimony of a person who had purchased stolen property from defendant on numerous occasions. Const., art. FindLaw.com Free, trusted legal information for consumers and legal professionals, SuperLawyers.com Directory of U.S. attorneys with the exclusive Super Lawyers rating, Abogado.com The #1 Spanish-language legal website for consumers, LawInfo.com Nationwide attorney directory and legal consumer resources. During jury deliberations at the guilt phase of the trial, the trial court discharged Juror Robert L., over defendant's objection, after receiving information from the jury foreperson that the juror had fallen asleep on two occasions. (a). Arturo Hernandez represented that defendant had entered into a written contract retaining him and Daniel Hernandez as his attorneys. Weeks estimated that 24.3 percent of the population in the Central Judicial District were Hispanics who qualified for jury service. A trial court should grant a mistrial only when a party's chances of receiving a fair trial have been irreparably damaged, and we use the deferential abuse of discretion standard to review a trial court ruling denying a mistrial. (People v. Bolden (2002) 29 Cal.4th 515, 555, 127 Cal.Rptr.2d 802, 58 P.3d 931.) She had been shot twice in the chest at close range and was pronounced dead at the hospital. The court carefully reviewed each photograph and, on one occasion, prevailed upon the prosecutor to withdraw a photograph that was particularly graphic and, on another occasion, to withdraw a photograph that was cumulative. As in Williams, we need not decide in the present case whether the trial court erred in using the area within a 20-mile radius around the courthouse as the relevant community for cross-section analysis. That is why-one of the reasons I gave them the day off. He was standing over her bed, holding a gun, and shining a flashlight in her eyes. Los Angeles County sheriff's detective Russell Uloth, testifying at Richard Ramirez's trial on 13 counts of murder, said he examined the body of Maxine Zazzara, She had multiple bruises, lacerations and contusions on her face. Before dawn on the morning of August 8, 1985, Sakina A. was awakened by the sound of defendant shooting her husband, Elyas, in the head as he lay next to her, asleep. I think this is just-. One of the victim's shoes was found on the ground and the other was in her car. We have seen him on almost a daily basis. A police officer who responded to the scene where Tsai-Lian Yu was murdered testified that witness Jorge Gallegos told him that he never saw the assailant fight with the victim, did not hear gunshots, and would not be able to identify the assailant. The relative disparity (3.5 percent divided by 17.5 percent), therefore, was 20 percent. (People v. Jenkins (2000) 22 Cal.4th 900, 943, 95 Cal.Rptr.2d 377, 997 P.2d 1044.) One of the 6-year-old survivors would be crucial in identifying Ramirez later on. The Court: Mr. Ramirez, are you satisfied with the disclosures that have been made to you? In this case he crawled into the house of Vincent and Maxine Zazzara, shooting both dead. The court gave the standard sentencing instruction (see CALJIC No. I probably, in an attempt not to embarrass Mr. Photographs were taken of the location near the Doi residence where Launie Dempster, the newspaper deliverer, had seen defendant in a parked car shortly before the murder. Defendant contends he was denied his right to due process and to a reliable determination of penalty under the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments to the federal Constitution because the court instructed the jury in accordance with CALJIC No. Defendant did ask the court to instruct the jury that the list of aggravating factors is exclusive, but, as discussed above, the court properly refused to so instruct the jury. As defendant recognizes, we repeatedly have rejected this claim. 83, 759 P.2d 1260.) 618, 545 P.2d 1322.). Drawers had been pulled out in the bedroom and bathroom, and clothing was strewn around the room. [Citation.] The trial court properly denied the request because it correctly was concerned that interrupting the jury's deliberations at that point to inquire about the effect of the juror's death would undermine the sanctity of deliberations. The People correctly point out that defendant did not ask the trial court to sever the charges into these four groups, and the trial court had no sua sponte duty to do so. The Court: Have you disclosed to Mr. Ramirez any facts, both negative and positive, which would bear not only on your ability to represent him but on any publicity that might come from your representation? vincent and maxine zazzara house. (People v. Champion, supra, 9 Cal.4th 879, 947, 39 Cal.Rptr.2d 547, 891 P.2d 93.) Under these circumstances, the court did not err in denying defense counsel's motion to appoint a psychiatrist to evaluate defendant. The Night Stalker kept himself under control for almost a year, but on March 17, 1985, at approximately 11:30 P.M., he struck again. ), Defendant did not request an instruction admonishing the jury not to double-count the special circumstances, and we repeatedly have held that the trial court has no duty to so instruct the jury sua sponte. But his murder of Maxine was especially ghastly as hed gouged out her eyes. WebMaxine Zazzara (1940-1985) Maxine Zazzara. The photographer testified that shadows cast by the car's roof would have obscured the face of the driver in a parked car. 2633, 86 L.Ed.2d 231, which held that it is constitutionally impermissible to rest a death sentence on a determination made by a sentencer who has been led to believe that the responsibility for determining the appropriateness of the defendant's death rests elsewhere. He also cites Woodson v. North Carolina (1976) 428 U.S. 280, 96 S.Ct. 885, 564 P.2d 1203, defendant argues that the trial court erred in failing to determine that the inference of consciousness of guilt was supported by sufficient evidence. In the present case, the determinate sentences were imposed for crimes that were committed separately from, or involved victims other than, the murders for which defendant was sentenced to death.
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