In re Riley

Decision Date22 May 2014
Docket NumberA137349
Citation172 Cal.Rptr.3d 171
CourtCalifornia Court of Appeals Court of Appeals
Parties IN RE Charles RILEY, on Habeas Corpus.

Jonathan Soglin, Executive Director, Frances M. Ternus, Staff Attorney, By Court Appointment Under the First District Appellate Project, Attorneys for Petitioner.

Kamala D. Harris, Attorney General, Jennifer A. Neill, Sr. Asst. Atty. Gen., Sara J. Romano, Super. Dep. A.G., Brian C. Kinney, Deputy Atty. Gen., Denise A. Yates, Deputy Atty. Gen., Attorneys for Respondent.

Kline, P.J.

Charles Riley, a life-term state prison inmate convicted of first degree murder in 1976, petitions for a writ of habeas corpus from a decision of the Board of Parole Hearings (Board) denying him parole. He contends the Board's finding of current dangerousness is unsupported by the evidence; the Board failed to consider his age as a relevant factor supporting suitability for parole; and his prison term is unconstitutionally disproportionate and excessive. We agree with petitioner's first contention and, accordingly, will grant the petition and remand for a new parole hearing.

STATEMENT OF THE CASE

On January 26, 1976, petitioner was convicted of the June 21, 1975 first degree murders of his then-girlfriend's parents. He was originally sentenced to death, but while his case was on appeal, the California Supreme Court declared the statutory death penalty scheme unconstitutional ( Rockwell v. Superior Court (1976) 18 Cal.3d 420, 134 Cal.Rptr. 650, 556 P.2d 1101 ) and the Court of Appeal modified petitioner's sentence to life imprisonment on each count, to run concurrently. His minimum eligible parole was set at seven years, June 27, 1982.

At a hearing on November 28, 2011, the Board found him unsuitable for parole. Petitioner challenged the parole denial with a petition for writ of habeas corpus filed in the Marin County Superior Court on July 31, 2012. The petition was denied on September 24, 2012.

The present petition was filed in this court on December 18, 2012. We issued an order to show cause on May 7, 2013, and the parties subsequently filed their return and traverse.

STATEMENT OF FACTS

At the time of the November 2011 parole hearing at issue here, petitioner was 56 years old. He committed his crimes when he was about a month past his 20th birthday and his then-girlfriend was 16 years old.

The January 31, 2011 Comprehensive Risk Assessment prepared for the current parole review hearing described the commitment offenses as follows:

"According to the Circumstances of Offense Report dated June 8, 1977, and as reflected in the most recent (2008) psychological evaluation, Charles Riley (age 19) and his girlfriend, Marlene Olive (age 16) planned and executed the murder of Marlene's parents on June 21, 1975, in Marin County. Marlene Olive divulged to friends that her boyfriend, Charles Riley, hit her mother on the head with a hammer while she was sleeping in the sewing room of her home. She also stated that her father was shot in the back by Charles Riley. She admitted to wrapping up her parents' bodies in sheets and waiting until dark. Once it was dark, both she and Riley took the bodies to the fire pits at China Camp where the bodies were burned using wood and gasoline. During the trial, witnesses testified that Mr. Riley admitted to killing both victims. Apparently Mr. Riley and Marlene Olive were going to wait until the victims were pronounced dead, collect the insurance money, and go to Ecuador, South America."

The Court of Appeal's 1978 opinion summarized petitioner's statement to the police at the time of his arrest: "Defendant and Marlene had been planning to murder the Olives for some time in order to prevent them from keeping him and Marlene apart; on the day of the killings (June 21) Marlene telephoned urging him to get his gun; it was prearranged that Marlene would lure her father from the house allowing defendant to enter and kill Mrs. Olive with a conveniently placed hammer; and then shoot Mr. Olive upon his return to the house; defendant obtained his gun (a .22 caliber revolver) and loaded it with bullets purchased for him by a friend; upon entering the sewing room, defendant bludgeoned the sleeping Mrs. Olive with the hammer (in a later confession to the jail nurse, defendant recounted his difficulty in dislodging the hammer and of the necessity to stab and suffocate Mrs. Olive because she continued to breathe); defendant then hid awaiting Mr. Olive's arrival; when Mr. Olive arrived and discovered the body of his wife, defendant shot him in the back; sometime later, the two of them tidied up the sewing room and rearranged certain furniture; later that evening, they placed the bodies (wrapped in sheets) in the Olives' automobile and drove to the firepits area where the bodies were doused with gasoline and set afire; defendant returned to the area on two occasions (later that night or early morning and again on June 23) and burned some of the unconsumed remains and other evidence; defendant stated he was ‘high’ on drugs when he committed the murders; defendant admitted discussing the killings with Deanna [a friend] on June 23." Petitioner also admitted cashing personal checks belonging to one of the victims several days after the killings.

As related in the court's opinion, at trial petitioner repudiated his confessions, claiming he had initially admitted his guilt in order to protect Marlene. He denied any complicity in the murder of Mrs. Olive and claimed self-defense in the killing of Mr. Olive, admitting only that he participated in the activities to conceal the crimes and dispose of the corpses and the theft and use of money taken from Mr. Olive's wallet. The court found petitioner's testimony about shooting Mr. Olive in self defense "implausible" and noted that petitioner and Marlene had "strong motives" to commit the crimes, in "Marlene's frequently expressed hatred for her parents and [petitioner's] anxiety to please her, the Olives' efforts to prevent Marlene from seeing [petitioner], and the personal monetary gain through the death of her parents (Marlene was the sole beneficiary in her parents' will), intended to finance their trip to South America."1

Police reports from the investigation of the homicides include various indications of Marlene's expressions of desire to kill her parents. A letter to petitioner, found in his home, read in part, " ‘Of course I hope you'll wait till I'm 17 to marry me or kill my parents.’ " Another letter to petitioner found in Marlene's bedroom read, " ‘If I could kill my parents, I wonder if Susan could come live with me.’ " A third letter, found in Marlene's bedroom and dated January 1974, was addressed to " ‘Mike,’ " whom the police officer writing the report believed to be a former boyfriend of Marlene's, and read, " ‘I was thinking about what you said, about that man who would take care of my Mom. I think we should talk it over, together. You and I. I'd be worried about what would happen after she died. But whatever did, wouldn't keep me away from you.’ " The police reports include several statements from witnesses who heard Marlene express her desire and intention to kill her parents.2

A social evaluation by a correctional counselor at San Quentin Prison early in petitioner's incarceration at San Quentin described him as a "very quiet, mild mannered, shy and withdrawn type of person, who never did have a lot of close friends but always craved for close interpersonal relationships with others. Quite probably he just never got beyond the immature and overly dependent pre-adolescent stage of emotional development." Petitioner exhibited "a low image of himself" and appeared to be "an inadequate type of person who is unable to cope with the demands of living in the complex and urbane society," "socially and emotionally isolated and quite unsophisticated." He "felt inferior due to his overweight condition and big stature" and his sense of " ‘not belonging’ " was exacerbated by the family's move to Arkansas for 16 months when he was in grade school, after which he was not able to resume contact with " ‘the old crowd’ " and began to associate with younger peers. He began to smoke marijuana just before starting seventh grade and found a sense of "status" in giving or selling drugs to high school students as well as in his motorcycle. He did not date girls and had no girlfriend or sexual intercourse until he was 19 and met Marlene Olive. By his description of their relationship, he was "passive, insecure and greatly dependent upon" her and she took "the domineering, aggressive and influential role of leadership." She "sought him out for sex, not just daily but even more than once a day. He now reflects back and sees that she forced him to remain childlike, dependent upon her approval, wanting to always please her, while she could be ‘the adult’ and dominate his emotions and behavior. [¶] Reportedly, this ‘love affair’ had a very forcefully direct influence in motivating their decision and actions in committing these homicides."

The counselor noted that the "psychodynamics of the relationship of the Subject to his girlfriend/crime partner seems to be pivotal in evaluating this case," that "these homicides are not in keeping with his overall social background" and that "[h]is short-lived criminal career does not suggest an underlying and basic antisocial/criminal mind or orientation. That Subject is guilty of these murders in undeniable. Also, that Subject is an inadequate person goes without question."

In a 1997 interview conducted as part of the evaluation for a parole consideration hearing, petitioner maintained that when he arrived at the Olives' house, Marlene had already hit her mother on the head with the hammer, that he shot Mr. Olive in self-defense when Mr. Olive attacked him after finding his wife's body, believing that petitioner had killed her. Petitioner stated that after shooting Mr. Olive, he saw that Mrs. Olive was suffering and barely...

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