Tomorrow morning, the Supreme Court will file its opinions in In re Kowalczyk, People v. Lopez, and People v. Stayner. (Briefs here; oral argument videos here, here, and here.)
The court limited the issues in Kowalczyk to: “(1) Which constitutional provision governs the denial of bail in noncapital cases – article I, section 12, subdivisions (b) and (c), or article I, section 28, subdivision (f)(3), of the California Constitution – or, in the alternative, can these provisions be reconciled? (2) May a superior court ever set pretrial bail above an arrestee’s ability to pay?” Review was granted in March 2023. More about the case here and here.
In Lopez, the court limited the issue to: “Does Penal Code section 1172.6, subdivision (a)(3), which requires defendants to allege that they ‘could not presently be convicted of murder or attempted murder because of changes to section 188 or 189 made effective January 1, 2019,’ render ineligible for relief petitioners who could have raised their challenges to imputed malice on prior direct appeal?” More about the case here.
Stayner is an automatic direct appeal from a December 2002 judgment of death. Unlike in discretionary review cases, the court does not list issues for death penalty appeals.
These filings will leave just one undecided case of the five argued on the February calendar. The opinion in that last case — People v. Morris — should file on Monday.
The Kowalczyk, Lopez, and Stayner opinions can be viewed tomorrow starting at 10:00 a.m.
