People v. Centeno
Annotate this CaseAfter a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of two counts of committing lewd acts on a child under the age of fourteen and one misdemeanor count of annoying or molesting a child under the age of eighteen. During trial, the prosecutor used a diagram showing the boundaries of California to illustrate the standard of proof and urged the jury to convict based on a “reasonable” view of the evidence. Defense counsel did not object to the prosecutor’s argument. The Supreme Court reversed, holding (1) there was a reasonable probability that the prosecutor’s argument caused one or more jurors to convict Defendant based on a lesser standard than proof beyond a reasonable doubt; and (2) defense counsel’s failure to object to the alleged prosecutorial misconduct violated Defendant’s constitutional right to the effective assistance of counsel.
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