California v. Bascomb
Annotate this CaseIn 2000, appellant Geraldo Bascomb and another man committed a home invasion robbery during which the second man shot and killed one of the residents. In 2005, a jury found Bascomb guilty of first degree felony murder and assault with a deadly weapon, and the trial court sentenced him to a prison term of 27 years to life. In 2018, the Legislature enacted Senate Bill No. 1437 (2017-2018 Reg. Sess.) which, among other things, amended the definition of felony murder so that an accomplice to an underlying felony who was not the actual killer couldn't be convicted of felony murder unless they aided in the murder with the intent to kill or were “a major participant in the underlying felony and acted with reckless indifference to human life, as described in subdivision (d) of [Penal Code] section 190.2.” SB 1437 also added Penal Code section 1170.95, which established a procedure for vacating murder convictions predating the amendment that could not be sustained under the new definition of felony murder. Bascomb challenged the trial judge’s denial of his Penal Code section 1170.95 petition to vacate his murder conviction, arguing there was insufficient evidence he acted with reckless indifference to human life. The Court of Appeal concluded the trial judge’s finding was "amply supported" by the record and therefore affirmed the order denying his petition.
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