People v. Aleman
Annotate this CaseDefendants Aleman and Medrano were convicted of first degree murder and other criminal offenses. The court rejected Medrano's contention that the prosecution, motivated by group bias, removed six prospective jurors by the improper exercise of peremptory challenges; the trial court did not err in admitting a letter referring to drug distribution where it was more probative than prejudicial; the trial court did not err in admitting evidence of a person's character or trait under Evidence Code section 1101; the trial court's flight instruction was justified because it shows consciousness of guilt where defendants wanted to avoid observation or arrest; the trial court correctly refused to instruct the jury to disregard that a witness was called to the witness stand, allowing her unjustified refusal to answer the prosecutor's questions to remain before the jury; the mere presence at a crime scene, without more, makes someone an eyewitness, not an accomplice; in any event, the failure to give an accomplice instruction was harmless; the court rejected Aleman's claims with respect to a police search of a storage unit which turned up a gun, ammunition, and Aleman's driver's license; the court rejected Aleman's contention that no credible evidence proves beyond a reasonable doubt that he was a shooter in the Bentley incident; and the court rejected defendants' remaining contentions. Accordingly, the court affirmed the judgment.
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