People v. Griffin

• Decision Date: 22 July 1971
• Docket Number: Cr. 883
• Citation: 96 Cal.Rptr. 218,18 Cal.App.3d 864
• Court: California Court of Appeals Court of Appeals
• Parties: The PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. Donald Paul GRIFFIN, Defendant and Appellant.

Page 218

96 Cal.Rptr. 218

18 Cal.App.3d 864

The PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. Donald Paul GRIFFIN, Defendant and Appellant.

Cr. 883.

Court of Appeal, Fifth District, California.

July 22, 1971.

Hearing Denied Sept. 30, 1971.

[18 Cal.App.3d 866] Michael Korn, Van Nuys, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for defendant and appellant.

Thomas C. Lynch and Evelle J. Younger, Attys. Gen., Charles P. Just and James T. McNally, Deputy Attys. Gen., Sacramento, for plaintiff and respondent.

OPINION

GEORGE A. BROWN, Associate Justice.

Donald Paul Griffin appeals from a judgment entered upon a guilty verdict of first degree murder (Pen.Code 187). He was sentenced to life imprisonment by the court (Pen.Code 190.1) after the jury failed to agree on the imposition of punishment.

As grounds for reversal, among others, appellant asserts that the trial court should have given, Sua sponte, a nonstatutory manslaughter instruction called for by People v. Conley, 64 Cal.2d 310, at page 318, 49 Cal.Rptr. 815, at page 820, 411 P.2d 911, at page 916, where the court said:

'Accordingly, a finding of provocation sufficient to reduce murder to manslaughter is not the sole means by which malice can be negated and voluntary manslaughter established. A person who intentionally kills may be incapable of harboring malice aforethought because of a mental disease, defect, or intoxication, and in such case his killing, unless justified or excused, is voluntary manslaughter.'

(See also People v. Castillo, 70 Cal.2d 264, 74 Cal.Rptr. 385, 449 P.2d 449; People v Mosher, 1 Cal.3d 379, 82 Cal.Rptr. 379, 461 P.2d 659; People v. Tidwell, 3 Cal.3d 82, 89 Cal.Rptr. 58, 473 P.2d 762.)

Failure to give such an instruction, Sua sponte, is prejudicial per se where the defense of diminished capacity is fairly raised by the evidence (People v. Cobas, 12 Cal.App.3d 952, 956, 91 Cal.Rptr. 110; People v. Aubrey, 253 Cal.App.2d 912, 920, 61 Cal.Rptr. 772; People v. Castillo, Supra, 70 Cal.2d 264, 74 Cal.Rptr. 385, 449 P.2d 449), and the trial court can be said to be alerted by the evidence presented, or by other means, that diminished capacity is an issue in the case. (People v. Cram, 12 Cal.App.3d 37, 42, 90 Cal.Rptr. 393.)

He also claims that the trial court inadequately instructed the jury as to the specific intent required for felony murder in the context of appellant's diminished capacity defense. (People v. Mosher, Supra, 1 Cal.3d 379, 82 Cal.Rptr. 379, 461 P.2d 659.) The theory of the prosecution was that the decedent was killed as an incident to being robbed. They jury was instructed on the felony murder doctrine based on robbery, but it was not instructed on diminished capacity as that defense relates to the specific intent required for robbery. The Supreme Court tells us in People v. Mosher, Supra, 1 Cal.3d 379, at 392--393, 82 Cal.Rptr. 379, at 387, 461 P.2d 659, at 667:

'As we recently observed in a case concerning a killing in the perpetration or attempt to perpetrate robbery: 'In cases in which the prosecution advances a felony-murder theory, defendant is entitled, upon a sufficient factual showing, to instructions negating a conviction on a felony-murder theory if, at the time of the alleged offense, defendant could not form the specific intent--here, the intent 'to permanently deprive the owner of his property'--that serves as a necessary element of the felony charged.' (Citations.)

'In the present case the prosecution advanced the felony-murder theory as to robbery, rape, and burglary. Defendant adduced a proper factual showing of diminished capacity which might negate his intent 'to permanently deprive the owner of his property' (citation), to enter the house of another with the intent to commit a felony (citations), or to commit an act of sexual intercourse with force upon a woman not his wife (citations).

'By failing to instruct the jury that defendant's diminished capacity might rebut each of the specific intents necessary to a finding of a killing in the perpetration or attempt to perpetrate rape, burglary, or robbery, and hence rebut the prosecution's felony-murder theory of first degree murder, the trial court deprived defendant of his constitutional right 'to have the jury determine every material issue presented by the evidence.' (Citations.)'

(See also People v. Tidwell, Supra, 3 Cal.3d 82, 89 Cal.Rptr. 58, 473 P.2d 762.)

While the trial court did instruct on diminished capacity as it pertains to murder, ¹ it did not give the nonstatutory manslaughter instruction or a diminished capacity instruction as it related to the alleged underlying robbery involved in the felony murder doctrine.

Our inquiry, therefore, must be directed toward determining whether there was sufficient evidence deserving of consideration as to have alerted the trial judge that diminished capacity was a defense, and to have required the giving of these instructions, Sua sponte. (People v. Modesto, 59 Cal.2d 722, 727 and 729, 31 Cal.Rptr. 225, 382 P.2d 33; People v. Graham, 71 Cal.2d 303, 316, 78 Cal.Rptr. 217, 455 P.2d 153; People v. Cram, Supra, 12 Cal.App.3d 37, 90 Cal.Rptr. 393.)

The appellant did not testify. He presented no independent evidence of intoxication, and there was no expert testimony on the subject. There was substantial testimony that he was not suffering from the effects of alcohol. The affirmative evidence on this issue was all by way of testimony of witnesses to whom appellant had made extrajudicial statements, and because of the importance of the determination to be made, we set forth in the margin that testimony. ² If the record affirmatively indicated that appellant was not relying on the defense of diminished capacity by reason of intoxication (People v. Fain, 70 Cal.2d 588, 75 Cal.Rptr. 633, 451 P.2d 65; People v. Nichols, 3 Cal.3d 150, 89 Cal.Rptr. 721, 474 P.2d 673) or that the instructions were intentionally omitted as part of the defense trial strategy, or that the trial judge was not alerted to the fact that this was a defense in the case (People v. Cram, Supra, 12 Cal.App.3d 37, 90 Cal.Rptr. 393), then the evidence set forth could very well be characterized as being so thin, fragmentary and minimal as to not have required the omitted instructions to have been given upon the court's own initiative. (People v. Moles, 10 Cal.App.3d 611, 617--618, 89 Cal.Rptr. 226; People v. Harris, 7 Cal.App.3d 922, 925--926, 87 Cal.Rptr. 46.)

However, we are directly and forcefully confronted with the indisputable fact that defense counsel requested, and the court gave, the instruction on diminished capacity as it applied to murder (see fn. 1). It would seem totally illogical to conclude other than that the giving of this instruction demonstrated beyond doubt that the defendant was relying upon the defense of diminished capacity, that the trial judge was alerted to that defense, and that the trial court was of the opinion that there was sufficient evidence of intoxication worthy of consideration by the jury to require all appropriate instructions on diminished capacity to have been given. In People v. Castillo, Supra, 70 Cal.2d 264, at page 270, 74 Cal.Rptr. 385, at page 388, 449 P.2d 449, at page 452, the court stated:

'Indeed, the trial court instructed the jury on the significance of the diminished capacity defense in other respects. The court must have concluded that sufficient evidence had been adduced to compel an instruction on diminished capacity because it gave such an instruction, although it was an inadequate one. Accordingly, in failing to instruct on nonstatutory voluntary manslaughter the court erred.'

It is elementary that we are compelled to follow the rubric of the Supreme Court set forth in the aforementioned cases dealing with the defense of diminished capacity. As Justice Traynor said in Weil v. Weil, 37 Cal.2d 770, 776, 236 P.2d 159, 161:

'A judge is not required to approve every statute or precedent by which his decision is governed. Like other citizens he is bound, not to believe in a particular law, but to obey it.'

Following these strictures, we have no alternative but to reverse the conviction, because the trial court inadequately instructed the jury as to voluntary manslaughter and felony murder in the context of defendant's diminished capacity defense.

While this disposes of the case, we comment briefly on some of the other points raised by the appellant for the guidance of the trial court upon retrial.

The court entered a pretrial discovery order upon the prosecution's motion ordering the appellant to disclose to the prosecution the names and addresses of the witnesses the defendant intended to call to testify in support of his affirmative defenses, and any statement written or oral in the possession of the defendant or his attorney given by said witnesses. Under the holdings in Prudhomme v. Superior Court 2 Cal.3d 320, 85 Cal.Rptr. 129, 466 P.2d 673, and Bradshaw v. Superior Court, 2 Cal.3d 332, 85 Cal.Rptr. 136, 466 P.2d 680, this order was void. The record, however, does not reflect whether the order was or was not actually complied with or what information, if any, was supplied pursuant to it. The void order considered in a vacuum would in and of itself have no effect. If it were not complied with, the appellant has no room to complain, and he has not pointed out in the record any reference demonstrating compliance.

If the order was complied with, he has waived any objection thereto, as he could have sought a peremptory writ. (Bradshaw v. Superior Court, Supra, 2 Cal.3d 332, 333, fn. 2, 85 Cal.Rptr. 136, 466 P.2d 680; see People v. White, 18 Cal.App.3d 44, 50--51, 95 Cal.Rptr. 576.) At any rate, since no peremptory writ was sought, appellant on this appeal is required to show that compliance therewith was prejudicial. (People v. Shipp, 59 Cal.2d 845, 31 Cal.Rptr. 457, 382 P.2d 577; People v. Archuleta, 16 Cal.App.3d 295, 299--300, 93 Cal.Rptr. 881.) This appellant has failed...