People v. Moore, S004614

Citation47 Cal.3d 63,762 P.2d 1218,252 Cal.Rptr. 494
Decision Date03 November 1988
Docket Number25087 and 25921,Nos. 23721,24849,No. S004614,S004614,s. 23721
CourtUnited States State Supreme Court (California)
Parties, 762 P.2d 1218 The PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. Charles Edward MOORE, Jr., Defendant and Appellant. In re Charles Edward Moore, Jr., on Habeas Corpus. Crim.

Keith C. Monroe, Santa Ana, under appointment by the Supreme Court, and Daniel D. Zahner, for defendant and appellant and petitioner.

John K. Van de Kamp, Atty. Gen., Steve White, Chief Asst. Atty. Gen., Norman H. Sokolow, John R. Gorey, Donald E. De Nicola, Gary R. Hahn and Ivy K. Kessel, Deputy Attys. Gen., for plaintiff and respondent.

LUCAS, Chief Justice.

Defendant Charles Edward Moore, Jr., appeals from a judgment imposing the death penalty following his conviction of two counts of first degree murder under the 1977 death penalty law (former Pen. Code, § 187 et seq.; all further statutory references are to this code unless otherwise indicated), two counts of robbery ( § 211), one count of burglary ( § 459), accompanied by six special circumstance findings, two each of robbery-murder, burglary-murder and multiple-murder (former § 190.2, subds. (c)(3)(i), (c)(3)(v) & (c)(5)), with various weapon use and great bodily injury enhancements ( §§ 12022.5, 12022.7 & 12022, subd. (b)). We have consolidated defendant's three petitions for writs of habeas corpus with the appeal. As will appear, we affirm the judgment in its entirety and deny the habeas corpus petitions.

I. FACTS AND PROCEDURE
A. Guilt Phase Evidence

The case against defendant was based almost entirely on the testimony of Terry Avery, who was granted immunity from prosecution in exchange for her testimony. Avery's testimony was substantially corroborated by physical evidence and expert witnesses.

In late November 1977, defendant coaxed Avery, while still a minor, to leave her parents' Denver, Colorado, home and travel with defendant and Lee Edward Harris to Lawrence, Kansas. In Lawrence, Avery, defendant and Harris attempted to rob a Woolworth's store where defendant had been previously employed. As they left the store, defendant grabbed the manager, Norwood. Harris forced Norwood into the back seat of the car, hit him on the head with a gun and demanded information about money in the store. Harris then ordered Norwood to disclose the location of the store safe and searched Norwood's wallet for the safe's combination. When Harris found the combination, Norwood said he would help open the safe and that he wanted only to get home to his son's birthday party. While Norwood begged for his life, defendant directed Harris to drive to a deserted part of town near some railroad tracks, where defendant shot and killed Norwood, and took his wallet.

Thereafter, the trio traveled by bus to southern California in order to rob the managers (Mr. and Mrs. Crumb) of an apartment complex on Broadway Avenue in Long Beach where defendant formerly resided. They checked into the Kona Hotel in Long Beach. Avery and defendant registered as Mr. and Mrs. Charles Brown, and Harris gave his name as Sam Harris.

That same evening, the three entered the Broadway Avenue complex by following James Jones, a tenant, through the front security door before it closed and locked. Both defendant and Harris were armed with pistols and, according to Avery, one of the men had a roll of adhesive tape. Avery knocked on the Crumbs' door, and defendant pushed his way into the apartment when Mrs. Crumb opened the door.

After tying up the Crumbs, and gagging and beating them, defendant hit Mr. Crumb in the head with the butt of a gun and demanded money from both victims. Defendant then instructed Avery to search the bedroom for jewelry. Avery found a jewelry case, and took the jewelry (which included rings, watches, belt buckles and necklaces), placing the items in a cloth sack. Defendant removed several items of jewelry from the victims, and placed them in the same sack.

Thereafter, defendant and Harris instructed Avery to go to the kitchen and try to find some knives. She did so and pretended to be unable to find any. Harris went into the kitchen and returned with a large butcher knife. Avery retreated to the bedroom, and after waiting "a few minutes," peered out and saw defendant stabbing Mr. Crumb while Harris held the victim's legs. Harris then instructed Avery to stab Mrs. Crumb with a pocketknife that was on the coffee table. 1 Avery did as she was told, stabbing Mrs. Crumb near her armpit. Avery then left the apartment while defendant and Harris remained behind. Both Mr. and Mrs. Crumb died in the attack.

Ten minutes later, defendant and Harris left the apartment and all three returned to the Kona Hotel. There they examined the jewelry, and gave Avery some rings for her participation in the robbery. Defendant and Harris each took some watches, and placed the remainder of the loot in a yellow plastic shoe bag obtained from a store in Lawrence, Kansas, bearing the name "Arensberg's Shoes." A few days later, Avery left defendant and Harris in Long Beach, and returned to Denver by bus.

Three or four days after she arrived in Denver, Avery saw defendant and Harris, first in Inglewood and next in Littleton, Colorado, both Denver suburbs. Avery subsequently confessed to her mother her involvement in both the Norwood and Crumb murders. Avery's mother called the Denver police, and Avery voluntarily surrendered to the authorities when they arrived at her mother's home and placed Avery under arrest. On the evening of her arrest, Avery told police about the Norwood murder in Kansas. Thereafter, Avery identified defendant and Harris in a photographic showup, and told the authorities that defendant and Harris could be found at an apartment complex located on West Belleview Street in Littleton.

Based on the above information, the Denver officers subsequently secured an arrest warrant and then proceeded to the Belleview Street apartment. They arrested Harris and defendant, who attempted to escape through a bedroom window. In plain view, the officers found the "Arenberg Shoes" bag containing numerous articles of jewelry belonging to the Crumbs. A gun was found on the floor next to where defendant was arrested. Defendant and Harris were wearing two rings taken during the Crumb robbery murder.

The next morning, Avery was released to Kansas authorities. One week later, she discussed with Detective Collette, of the Long Beach Police Department, the facts surrounding the Crumb murders. Avery admitted her participation in the attack. At the request of her attorney, Avery was granted complete immunity for her involvement in the Crumb murders in return for her testimony.

At trial, defendant testified on his own behalf. He conceded he had planned the robbery of the Crumbs and showed Avery and Harris where the Crumbs lived, but stated that he remained at the Kona Hotel while Avery and Harris robbed and murdered the Crumbs. Defendant presented no other witnesses at the guilt phase.

B. Penalty Phase Evidence

The penalty phase of the trial lasted six days. Defendant again testified on his own behalf. He told the jury that he had "found the Lord" and asked for mercy. Defendant also presented six witnesses, including his three brothers and a sister who testified about defendant's childhood in their broken family. According to Milton Moore (defendant's brother), defendant's mother moved to California with one of his brothers when defendant was eight years old. Thereafter, defendant lived with his father, who had a severe drinking and gambling problem. All of the boys shared beds and slept in the basement. The father punished the children by whipping them and locking them in a small room in the basement, and he generally provided them with inadequate food and clothing. He also directed the children to steal automobile parts, hot water heaters and washing machine parts from neighbor's yards. Defendant, whose mother was White and whose father was Black, was often teased by other children for being a "half-breed."

Michael Maloney, who holds a Ph.D. in clinical psychology, testified that he examined defendant and concluded defendant committed the murders because of the environment in which he was raised. Specifically, Maloney described defendant as a "sociopath" and explained that he suffered from a "mixed personality disorder" stemming from early childhood training in stealing. Wayne Downs, a deputy sheriff for the County of Los Angeles, testified that defendant had behaved properly while in custody awaiting trial.

Four witnesses testified for the prosecution. Deputy Sheriff Reilhan from Littleton, Colorado, testified that in July 1979, defendant escaped while Reilhan was transporting him to court in Aurora, Colorado. Defendant was captured a block away the same day. James Peters, a chief deputy district attorney in Colorado, testified that he successfully prosecuted defendant in 1980 for the crimes of escape and aggravated robbery. Avery testified that defendant robbed the Lawrence, Kansas, Woolworth's store and shot Norwood, the store manager, four times at point blank range after kidnapping him. In related testimony, Michael Malone (the district attorney who prosecuted the Norwood robbery-murder), stated that defendant was found guilty in 1979 in Kansas of kidnapping, aggravated robbery and first degree murder in the Norwood incident.

II. PRETRIAL MOTIONS

Defendant contends the trial court erred in failing to substitute counsel, or in the alternative, appoint additional counsel to assist trial counsel. He also complains that the court erred by denying his request to proceed in propria persona. Defendant asserts that each error requires reversal of the entire judgment.

The record shows that before trial, defendant sent a letter to the court postmarked March 12, 1984, stating his...

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