Cash v. Ayers, No. 5:2006cv07064 - Document 54 (N.D. Cal. 2010)
Court Description: ORDER DENYING PETITION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS. Signed by Judge Jeremy Fogel on 10/12/2010.
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Cash v. Ayers Doc. 54 1 **E-Filed 10/12/2010** 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 9 FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 11 12 RANDALL SCOTT CASH, Petitioner, 13 ORDER1 DENYING PETITION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS v. 14 15 Case Number 5:06-cv-07064-JF ROBERT AYERS, Acting Warden San Quentin State Prison, 16 Respondent. 17 18 19 Petitioner Randall Scott Cash (“Cash”) seeks a writ of habeas corpus pursuant to 28 20 U.S.C. § 2254. For the reasons discussed below, the Court concludes that Cash is not entitled to 21 relief and will deny the petition. I. BACKGROUND 22 23 On June 18, 1992, a jury convicted Cash of first degree murder (Cal. Code, § 187)2 with a 24 true finding for a special circumstance of murder in the course of robbery (§ 190.2, subd. 25 (a)(17)(A)). Cash also was convicted of the attempted murder of Susan Balestri, the murder 26 27 1 28 2 This disposition is not designated for publication in the official reports. All statutory citations are to the California Penal Code unless otherwise stated. Case No. 5:06-cv-07064-JF ORDER DENYING PETITION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS (JFLC1) Dockets.Justia.com 1 victim’s girlfriend. (§§ 664, 187). The jury found that Cash personally used a firearm in both 2 the murder and attempted murder (§ 12022.5). It also found that the attempted murder was 3 committed with a deadly and dangerous weapon (§12022, subd. (b)), resulting in great bodily 4 injury (§12022.7). The jury returned a verdict of death at the penalty phase. (Superior Court of 5 Alameda County, No. H-8485, Stanley P. Golde, Judge.) 6 Petitioner challenged his convictions on direct appeal and in a related habeas petition to 7 the California Supreme Court. On July 25, 2002 the Supreme Court affirmed Cash’s 8 convictions, but reversed the judgment of death. People v. Cash, 28 Cal.4th 703 (2002). 9 Petitioner then filed a petition for writ of certiorari in the United States Supreme Court, which 10 was denied on February 24, 2003. The California Supreme Court denied Cash’s subsequent 11 habeas petition on October 29, 2003. On November 17, 2005 Cash was sentenced to life without 12 the possibility of parole after the district attorney announced that he no longer was seeking the 13 death penalty. 14 Cash timely filed the instant federal habeas petition on November 14, 2006, asserting the 15 following grounds for relief: (1) the prosecutor’s peremptory challenge of a juror who was raised 16 as a Jehovah’s Witness constituted an equal protection violation under Batson v. Kentucky, 476 17 U.S. 79 (1986); (2) the trial court’s exclusion of evidence showing the decedent’s character for 18 violence violated Cash’s right to present a meaningful defense; (3) the trial court’s limitation on 19 the impeachment of Susan Balestri violated Cash’s due process rights; (4) trial counsel was 20 ineffective for failing to object to the trial judge’s argumentative statements during the cross- 21 examination of Balestri; (5) admission of evidence that Balestri was pregnant violated Cash’s 22 due process rights; (6) and (7) trial counsel was ineffective for failing to object to the trial 23 judge’s statements during the impeachment of a key prosecution witness and for failing to 24 present evidence of Cash’s brain damage; and (8) the trial court violated Cash’s equal protection 25 rights by failing to instruct on theft as a lesser-included offense of special circumstance murder 26 predicated on robbery. 27 28 II. STANDARD OF REVIEW A federal court may entertain a petition for writ of habeas corpus “on behalf of a person 2 Case No. 5:06-cv-07064-JF ORDER DENYING PETITION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS (JFLC1) 1 in custody pursuant to the judgment of a State court only on the ground that he is in custody in 2 violation of the Constitution or laws or treaties of the United States.” 28 U.S.C. § 2254(a). On April 24, 1996, Congress enacted the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act 3 4 of 1996 (“AEDPA”), which applies to all petitions for writ of habeas corpus filed after its 5 enactment. Lindh v. Murphy, 521 U.S. 320 (1997). This petition was filed after the effective 6 date of AEDPA and is therefore subject to its provisions. AEDPA altered the standard of review that a federal habeas court must apply with 7 8 respect to a state prisoner's claim that was adjudicated on the merits in state court. Williams v. 9 Taylor, 529 U.S. 362, 402-13 (2000). Under AEDPA, an application for habeas corpus will not 10 be granted unless the adjudication of the claim “resulted in a decision that was contrary to, or 11 involved an unreasonable application of, clearly established Federal law, as determined by the 12 Supreme Court of the United States;” or “resulted in a decision that was based on an 13 unreasonable determination of the facts in light of the evidence presented in the State Court 14 proceeding.” 28 U.S.C. § 2254(d); Lockyer v. Andrade, 538 U.S. 63, 72-73 (2003); Williams v. 15 Taylor, 529 U.S. 362, 412-13 (2000). “A federal habeas court may not issue the writ simply 16 because that court concludes in its independent judgment that the relevant state-court decision 17 applied clearly established federal law erroneously or incorrectly.” Lockyer, 538 U.S. at 75-76 18 (citations omitted). “Rather, that application must be objectively unreasonable.” Id. (citations 19 omitted). While habeas corpus relief is an important instrument to ensure that individuals are 20 21 constitutionally protected, Barefoot v. Estelle, 463 U.S. 880, 887 (1983) holds that direct review 22 of a criminal conviction is the primary method for a defendant to challenge that conviction. 23 Brecht v. Abrahamson, 507 U.S. 619, 633 (1993). In addition, the state court’s factual 24 determinations must be presumed correct, and the federal court must accept all factual findings 25 made by the state court unless the petitioner can rebut “the presumption of correctness by clear 26 and convincing evidence.” 28 U.S.C. § 2254(e)(1); Purkett v. Elem, 514 U.S. 765 (1995). III. DISCUSSION 27 28 A. Batson Challenge (Claim One) 3 Case No. 5:06-cv-07064-JF ORDER DENYING PETITION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS (JFLC1) 1 The Supreme Court has established a three-part test to determine if a prosecutor has 2 discriminated in excluding prospective jurors. Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79, 96-98 (1986). 3 First, the defendant must make a prima facie showing that the challenge was based on race. Id. 4 Second, the prosecutor must offer a race-neutral basis for the challenge. Id. Third, the court 5 must determine whether the defendant has shown “purposeful discrimination.” Id. Under the 6 AEDPA standard of review, a federal habeas court may grant relief only if a state court’s factual 7 findings on a Batson motion were unreasonable; otherwise the findings must be presumed to be 8 correct. Rice v. Collins, 546 U.S. 333, 338-39 (2006). The petitioner has the burden of rebutting 9 the presumption by “clear and convincing evidence.” Id. 10 Here, Petitioner maintains that the California Supreme Court erred in affirming the denial 11 of his Batson challenge.3 During voir dire, the prosecutor exercised peremptory strikes of six of 12 seven African-Americans. Cash brought a Batson challenge, claiming that this demonstrated a 13 pattern of racial discrimination in jury selection. RT 1250-57. Although the trial court made no 14 express finding that Cash had made a prima facie showing that the strikes were based on race, it 15 asked the prosecutor to assert a legitimate non-discriminatory explanation for excusing the 16 jurors. RT 1257. In the end, the court found no systematic exclusion based on race. RT 1273. 17 Cash appealed the trial court’s ruling as to the removal of the seventh African-American 18 prospective juror, Mr. Spears, claiming that the prosecutor’s reasons for removing him were 19 merely a pretext for discrimination. At trial, the prosecutor stated that she had excused Spears 20 for two reasons: (1) he indicated that he was raised as a Jehovah’s Witness and, in her 21 experience, individuals with that religious background were reluctant to vote for death; and (2) 22 his answers during voir dire were “arrogant” and “smart -aleckey,” demonstrating a potential 23 hostility to the proceedings. RT 1263-64. On appeal, the state appellate court concluded that 24 these reasons “[found] support in the record” and were “not inherently implausible.” People v. 25 26 27 28 3 In 1978 California adopted its own test to address the exclusion of jurors based on race, religion, ethnicity, or similar grounds. People v. Wheeler, 22 Cal.3d 258, 276-77 (1978). Cash brought his challenge in the trial pursuant to both Batson and Wheeler. However, this order applies only the federal Batson standard and will refer to Cash’s objection at trial as a Batson challenge. 4 Case No. 5:06-cv-07064-JF ORDER DENYING PETITION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS (JFLC1) 1 Cash, 28 Cal.4th 703, 726 (2002). 2 The only issue for review by this Court is whether the state courts were correct in 3 concluding that the prosecutor’s explanation was sincere rather than pretextual. Because 4 determinations of credibility are made best by the trial court, there is no basis for reversal of the 5 ruling unless the prosecutor’s explanation was “completely outlandish” or there was “other 6 evidence which demonstrates its falsity.” U.S. v. Stafford, 136 F.3d 1109, 1114 (7th Cir. 1998). 7 While Spears indicated that he was no longer a Jehovah’s Witness,4 it certainly was not 8 “completely outlandish” for the prosecutor to express skepticism about Spears’ ability to impose 9 the death penalty in light of his religious upbringing. Both federal and state courts have held that 10 it is not discriminatory to remove a juror whose religious beliefs would hinder him from 11 convicting a criminal defendant or imposing the death penalty. See U.S. v. DeJesus, 347 F.3d 12 500, 510-11 (3d Cir. 2003); Stafford, 136 F.3d at 1114; Miller v. Sullivan, No. 08-cv-1675-JLS, 13 2010 WL 3339304, at *12 (S.D. Cal. Feb. 23, 2010); People v. Catlin, 26 Cal.4th 81, 118-19 14 (2001); People v. Ervin, 22 Cal.4th 48, 76 (2000).5 15 Nor was Spears’ religious background the only reason for his exclusion. As the 16 prosecutor indicated, Spears appeared anxious and hostile during questioning. RT 1263-64. 17 While this Court cannot infer demeanor and tone from the record, it is reasonably clear that 18 Spears’ answers during voir dire were curt.6 Under AEDPA, this Court must give considerable 19 deference to the trial court’s firsthand observation of Spears. That observation led to the 20 conclusion that “there was a valid reason for the prosecutor to exercise a peremptory challenge.” 21 RT 1273. Petitioner simply has not offered clear and convincing evidence that the acceptance of 22 the prosecutor’s explanation was objectively unreasonable, as is required by Rice v. Collins, 546 23 4 24 25 During voir dire Mr. Spears indicated that he knew another prospective juror. When asked about their relationship he stated, “I was raised in Jehovah’s Witnesses, and she’s a Jehovah Witness, and I no longer.” RT 466. 26 5 27 6 28 The United States Supreme Court has yet to address this issue directly. When asked to clarify an answer to his questionnaire Spears stated, “I feel that it’s fairly clear I would think.” RT 465. And, when asked to confirm his willingness to vote for death he replied, “I said yes.” Id. 5 Case No. 5:06-cv-07064-JF ORDER DENYING PETITION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS (JFLC1) 1 U.S. at 338-39. 2 B. Evidentiary Rulings 3 In a federal habeas proceeding, a conviction may be set aside if it is found that state court 4 rulings on the admissibility of evidence violated the petitioner’s basic constitutional rights. 5 Montana v. Egelhoff, 518 U.S. 37, 43 (1996). 6 1. Claim Two 7 Cash contends that his right to present a meaningful defense was compromised by the 8 trial court’s refusal to permit evidence of the murder victim’s violent past. At trial, Cash 9 attempted to present evidence that the murder victim, Bud Smith, used physical violence to 10 enforce the repayment of debts and threatened violence toward Cash if Cash failed to pay rent. 11 Although the trial court allowed testimony that Smith had used force in Cash’s presence to evict 12 a former tenant, it did not allow Cash to inquire about Smith’s general debt collection methods. 13 RT 1438-39. Nor did it allow hearsay testimony that Smith had threatened to harm Cash if Cash 14 failed to repay his debt. RT 1644. 15 Cash argues that this additional evidence should have been admitted in order to show that 16 the killing was retaliatory in nature, which would have reduced it to second degree murder and 17 would have supported his defense that robbery was not the objective. However, as the California 18 Supreme Court observed, “Smith’s customary debt collection practices were not relevant to 19 show defendant’s state of mind at the time he killed Smith unless defendant knew of those 20 practices.” Cash, 28 Cal.4th at 726. Cash did not present any such evidence. Likewise, Cash did 21 not show that he knew Smith was discussing threats of violence against him with other people. 22 The trial court’s ruling was consistent with California’s rules of evidence regarding the 23 relevance of a victim’s character for violence and it did not limit Cash’s ability to present a 24 meaningful defense. Pursuant to Cal. Evid. Code § 352, “The court in its discretion may exclude 25 evidence if its probative value is substantially outweighed by the probability that its admission 26 will (a) necessitate undue consumption of time or (b) create substantial danger of undue 27 prejudice, of confusing the issues, or of misleading the jury.” By the time he sought to admit 28 testimony about Smith’s tendency for violence, Cash already had shown that he witnessed 6 Case No. 5:06-cv-07064-JF ORDER DENYING PETITION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS (JFLC1) 1 Smith’s participation in a forceful eviction. Further evidence on that topic would have been 2 redundant. Moreover, as the state appellate court pointed out, Cash still was permitted to 3 document his increasing anxiety about the debt repayment and to characterize the killing as an 4 act of rage. Cash, 28 Cal.4th at 727. 5 2. Claim Three 6 Petitioner’s third claim is twofold: he argues that (1) the California Supreme Court 7 incorrectly affirmed the trial court’s decision to limit the impeachment of Susan Balestri; and (2) 8 the trial judge’s comments about the precluded evidence in front of the jury violated his due 9 process rights. He relies on Olden v. Kentucky, 488 U.S. 227, 233 (1988) in which the Supreme 10 Court held that the failure to permit reasonable cross-examination violates a defendant’s right to 11 confrontation. He cites two additional cases for the proposition that in a fair trial the jury must 12 consider only relevant and competent evidence bearing on the defendant’s guilt or innocence. 13 Bruton v. United States, 391 U.S. 123, 131 n. 6 (1968); People v. Valentine, 42 Cal.3d 170, 177 14 (1986). The state courts’ determinations were not contrary to these precedents. 15 On cross-examination, Cash attempted to expose an alleged inconsistency as to whether 16 Balestri saw him take money from a clipboard under Smith’s nightstand. RT 1462. During 17 direct examination, Balestri testified that she saw Cash remove money from the clipboard. RT 18 1382. Cash claimed that this was contrary to the testimony Balestri gave at her preliminary 19 hearing, where she was asked, “Now you didn’t actually see . . . Randy take the money, did 20 you?” and she replied, “No, I didn’t actually see him.” CT 242. 21 The trial court did not allow Cash to admit this testimony as a prior inconsistent 22 statement under Cal. Evid. Code § 1235. RT 1462-64. In the court’s view, Balestri’s answer on 23 direct examination was not inconsistent with her previous statement, as she was asked two 24 distinct questions. Id. At the preliminary hearing, she was asked if she saw Cash take the 25 money. Id. On direct examination she was asked if she saw him in possession of the money. Id. 26 However, the transcript does not reasonably support a determination that the question 27 asked at trial was, in fact, different from the one posed at the preliminary hearing. When taken at 28 face value, there appears to be a direct contradiction. 7 Case No. 5:06-cv-07064-JF ORDER DENYING PETITION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS (JFLC1) 1 Despite this ruling, Cash took advantage of several opportunities to uncover 2 contradictions on other points in Balestri’s testimony including discrepancies as to the sequence 3 of events and the amount of money found on the clipboard. RT 1450-54, RT 1420. The trial 4 court’s decision to limit the impeachment of Balestri did not prevent Cash from effectively 5 cross-examining her. Consequently, the trial court’s determination was harmless error. 6 Finally, as the California Supreme Court noted, the trial judge did not engage in 7 misconduct by suggesting that defense counsel’s question was improper and by declaring that 8 there was no inconsistency in Balestri’s statements. Cash, 28 Cal.4th at 728. “California’s 9 Constitution expressly provides that a judge may comment on the evidence.” Smith v. Curry, 10 11 580 F.3d 1071, 1079 (9th Cir. 2009).7 The comments made by the trial judge did not amount to advocacy for the prosecution 12 and did not deny Cash a fair trial. Taken as a whole, Balestri’s testimony described a sequential 13 murder and robbery, and “there is not a reasonable probability that the trial court’s ruling 14 affected the jury’s decision that petitioner had formed the intent to rob before or at the time he 15 shot Smith.” Cash, 28 Cal.4th at 728. 16 3. Claim Five 17 Cash next argues that he was denied due process when the trial court improperly admitted 18 evidence of Balestri’s pregnancy. Cash is correct that this evidence was more prejudicial than 19 probative. However, the California Supreme Court appropriately concluded that its admission 20 was harmless error under the standards set forth in People v. Watson, 46 Cal.2d 818, 836 (1956)8 21 and Chapman v. California, 386 U.S. 18, 23 (1967)9. Cash, 28 Cal.4th at 729. 22 23 24 25 26 27 7 “The court may make any comment on the evidence and testimony and credibility of any witness as in its opinion is necessary for the proper determination of the cause.” Cal. Const. art. VI, § 10. 8 “[A] ‘miscarriage of justice’ . . . [occurs when] it is reasonably probable that a result more favorable to the appealing party would have been reached in the absence of the error.” Watson, 46 Cal.2d at 836. 9 28 “The question is whether there is a reasonable possibility that the evidence complained of might have contributed to the conviction” (citations omitted). Chapman, 386 U.S. at 23. 8 Case No. 5:06-cv-07064-JF ORDER DENYING PETITION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS (JFLC1) 1 Given the evidence presented at trial, the jury likely would have found Cash guilty of 2 first degree murder with a special circumstance even without knowledge of Balestri’s pregnancy. 3 According to the jury instructions, first degree murder is defined as the unlawful killing of a 4 human being in the course of a robbery. RT 1767. The special circumstance predicated on 5 robbery requires a finding that the murder was committed in order to advance the commission of 6 a robbery or to facilitate the escape from a robbery or to avoid detection. RT 1778. The 7 evidence showed that the night before the murder, Cash asked a friend if he knew a coke dealer 8 to “knock off” for money to buy drugs. RT 1343. There also was evidence that when Balestri 9 asked why Cash was assaulting her he said, “Because I have to.” RT 1371. These statements 10 imply a premeditated robbery and an attempt to avoid detection by killing the eyewitnesses. 11 Thus, the California Supreme Court’s determination that the testimony concerning Balestri’s 12 pregnancy did not contribute to the conviction was not unreasonable. 13 C. Ineffective Assistance of Counsel 14 To succeed on a Sixth Amendment claim of ineffective assistance of counsel, a petitioner 15 must show that there is a reasonable probability that he was prejudiced by counsel’s errors. 16 Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 694 (1984). “A reasonable probability is a probability 17 sufficient to undermine confidence in the outcome” Id. 18 1. Claim Four 19 Petitioner claims that his trial counsel rendered ineffective assistance by failing to object 20 to the trial judge’s argumentative assertions during the attempted impeachment of Balestri. 21 However, as noted above, the trial judge was well within his rights under California law, and 22 there was no prejudice. 23 2. Claim Six 24 Likewise, Cash was not prejudiced by counsel’s failure to object to the trial judge’s 25 commentary during the cross-examination of Todd Babbitt. Cash contends that his counsel 26 should have objected when the trial judge undercut defense efforts to impeach Babbitt’s 27 credibility by trivializing Babbitt’s motivation for testifying. 28 In his opening statement, defense counsel highlighted the fact that Babbitt had received 9 Case No. 5:06-cv-07064-JF ORDER DENYING PETITION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS (JFLC1) 1 consideration for his testimony in the form of lenient prosecution on a pending drunk driving 2 offense. RT 1305-06. The prosecutor sought to discredit this theory on direct examination by 3 exposing the offense and indicating that there was a bench warrant outstanding because Babbit 4 had failed to pay his fine. RT 1318-20. The trial judge then weighed in, stating “You’re going 5 to make a misdemeanor a federal offense if you don’t take care of it. . . . You don’t pay, you go 6 to jail.” RT 1319-20. Cash claims that this amounted to “mock judicial severity” that 7 undermined the seriousness of the attempted impeachment, and that the error requires reversal 8 because Babbitt’s testimony was key to the issue of premeditation. 9 The California Supreme Court reasonably determined that the comments were an 10 innocuous restatement of the law and that Cash was not prejudiced by his counsel’s failure to 11 object to them at trial. Cash, 28 Cal.4th at 730. Moreover, the court appropriately noted that 12 any harm resulting from the trial judge’s comments could have been cured by an admonition. Id. 13 Because Cash failed to request a curative admonition at trial, he has defaulted that particular 14 claim of error under California’s contemporaneous objection rule. Coleman v. Thompson, 501 15 U.S. 722, 750 (1991) (holding that federal habeas review of a claim is barred in all cases where a 16 state prisoner has defaulted his federal claim in state court pursuant to an adequate and 17 independent state procedural rule). 18 3. Claim Seven 19 Cash asserts that his trial counsel’s failure to discover and present evidence regarding 20 Cash’s organic brain damage amounted to ineffective assistance at the guilt phase of the trial. 21 Although the California Supreme Court denied this claim without explanation, denial was 22 appropriate. 23 During the penalty phase, two psychiatrists–Dr. Modlin and Dr. Vicary–testified on 24 Cash’s behalf. Both testified that Cash suffered from severe depression, yet neither indicated 25 that this prevented him from forming criminal intent.10 26 27 28 10 Dr. Modlin specifically indicated that he did not find any serious mental illness. RT 2367. Dr. Vicary echoed this when he stated that he and Dr. Modlin were both “saying a serious depression, not the kind that you would [have], say, if you went to the county hospital on the 10 Case No. 5:06-cv-07064-JF ORDER DENYING PETITION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS (JFLC1) 1 Dr. Modlin had examined Cash in 1977 in connection with a previous crime. Defense 2 counsel was aware of Dr. Modlin’s findings, yet chose not to call him as a witness during the 3 guilt phase. “In general, an attorney is entitled to rely on the opinions of mental health experts in 4 deciding whether to pursue an insanity or diminished capacity defense.” Hendricks v. Calderon, 5 70 F.3d 1032, 1038 (9th Cir. 1995). In light of this standard and the benign diagnoses presented 6 at the penalty phase, trial counsel’s decision was reasonable. 7 D. Jury Instructions (Claim Eight) 8 9 For a habeas petitioner to obtain relief from a federal court based on erroneous jury instructions, “it must be established not merely that the instruction is undesirable, erroneous or 10 even ‘universally condemned,’ but that it violated some [constitutional right].” Cupp v. 11 Naughten, 414 U.S. 141, 146 (1973). “The instruction may not be judged in artificial isolation, 12 but must be considered in the context of the instructions as a whole and the trial record.” Estelle 13 v. McGuire, 502 U.S. 62, 72 (1991) (citations omitted). Essentially, “the court must evaluate 14 jury instructions in the context of the overall charge to the jury as a component of the entire trial 15 process.” Johnson v. Runnels, C 02-5537, 2006 WL 823060, at * 16 (N.D. Cal. Mar. 29, 2006). 16 In his eighth claim for relief, Cash contends that the trial court violated his right to equal 17 protection when it failed to instruct the jury that simple theft, which is a lesser-included offense 18 of robbery, also is a lesser-included offense of special circumstance murder predicated on 19 robbery. He argues that in this respect a person charged with special circumstance murder in the 20 commission of a robbery is similarly situated with a person charged with robbery alone. He 21 reasons that because the person charged with robbery would be eligible for a jury instruction on 22 theft, he too was entitled to a lesser-included offense instruction on theft–especially because a 23 finding of theft would result in his acquittal of special circumstance murder, which is a death- 24 eligible offense. 25 As the California Supreme Court determined, Cash is not similarly situated to his 26 hypothetical defendant, because “he could not be punished for robbery or for the lesser included 27 28 psychiatric unit.” RT 2501. 11 Case No. 5:06-cv-07064-JF ORDER DENYING PETITION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS (JFLC1) 1 offense of theft even if the jury had made a ‘not true’ finding as to the robbery-murder special 2 circumstance.” Cash, 28 Cal.4th at 738. This conclusion is supported by federal law. Cash 3 relies on People v. Turner, 50 Cal.3d 668, 690 (1990) for the proposition that the failure to 4 instruct on theft amounts to error in a case involving a charge of special circumstance murder 5 predicated on robbery. However, on federal habeas review in the same case, the Ninth Circuit 6 found no error. Turner v. Calderon, 281 F.3d 851, 886 (9th Cir. 2002). Relying on Beck v. 7 Alabama, 447 U.S. 625 (1980) and its progeny, the court held that justice only requires “the jury 8 not be faced with an all-or-nothing, capital conviction-or-acquittal choice.” Turner, 281 F.3d at 9 884. No error exists where the judge provides alternative instructions for a finding of guilt of a 10 non-capital offense. Id. at 886. Here, the trial court did exactly that. The jury was instructed 11 that Cash could be acquitted or convicted on any or all of the following offenses: murder, murder 12 with a special circumstance, and attempted murder. RT 1786. As such, the court did not violate 13 Cash’s right to equal protection, and there was no error. 14 IV. ORDER 15 16 Accordingly, the petition for writ of habeas corpus is DENIED. The Clerk shall enter judgment and close the file. 17 18 IT IS SO ORDERED. 19 20 21 DATED: 10/12/2010 __________________________________ JEREMY FOGEL United States District Judge 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 12 Case No. 5:06-cv-07064-JF ORDER DENYING PETITION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS (JFLC1)
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