Yesterday, the Supreme Court filed four opinions in death penalty appeals involving a total of five defendants. The majority, concurring, and dissenting opinions totaled 604 pages. The court affirmed the convictions and death penalties for three defendants (although one defendant’s sentence survived by a bare 4-3 vote), affirmed the conviction, but reversed the death penalty for one defendant, and reversed both the conviction and death penalty for one defendant.
Many of the pages concerned the appropriate retroactive application of California’s Racial Justice Act (see here, here, and here). More on that later, although you can find some history of the cases here, here, here, and here.
First, here’s a breakdown of the bottom lines.
People v. Bankston: The court affirmed the conviction for two 1991 murders in Los Angeles and Compton, but, with the agreement of both sides, the court found RJA errors required reversal of the death penalty. Justice Kruger wrote the court’s opinion for five justices. Justices Liu and Evans filed separate concurrences.
People v. Barrera: The court affirmed the conviction and death penalty for the torture murders of the defendant’s two young children. Justice Kruger wrote the court’s opinion for five justices. Justice Liu filed a separate concurrence. Justice Evans filed a dissenting opinion, asserting that RJA violations required reversal of both the conviction and the death sentence.
People v. Chhuon and Pan: The defendants were sentenced to death for 1995 murders in Sacramento and Pomona. The court affirmed the conviction and death penalty for Chhuon, but reversed Pan’s entire judgment “because defense counsel violated Pan’s right to decide the objective of his defense,” i.e., error under McCoy v. Louisiana (2018) 584 U.S. 414. Justice Groban wrote the court’s opinion for just four justices. Justice Liu, writing for himself and Justices Jenkins (sitting pro tem after his retirement) and Evans, argued Chhuon’s death sentence should have been reversed because of RJA violations.
People v. Demolle: The court affirmed the conviction and death penalty for a 1999 Oakland murder of an 11-year-old girl. Chief Justice Guerrero wrote the court’s opinion for five justices. Justices Liu and Evans filed separate opinions, concurring in the affirmance of the conviction, but contending that the death penalty should be reversed because of an RJA violation
