People v. DeLeon

22 Cal. App. 4th 1265, 27 Cal. Rptr. 2d 818, 94 Cal. Daily Op. Serv. 1354, 93 Daily Journal DAR 2331, 1994 Cal. App. LEXIS 150
CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedFebruary 23, 1994
DocketNo. B072409
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 22 Cal. App. 4th 1265 (People v. DeLeon) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People v. DeLeon, 22 Cal. App. 4th 1265, 27 Cal. Rptr. 2d 818, 94 Cal. Daily Op. Serv. 1354, 93 Daily Journal DAR 2331, 1994 Cal. App. LEXIS 150 (Cal. Ct. App. 1994).

Opinion

Opinion

robbery and assault, claiming error in the admission of his confession, insufficiency of evidence, sentencing error, and a due process violation in the “reasonable doubt” instruction. We find no error and affirm the judgment.

Factual and Procedural Summary

This case involved four separate incidents.

On the afternoon of July 11, 1992, an altercation arose between appellant and several individuals at the American Legion Hall in Whittier. Appellant grabbed Edmundo Garcia’s shirt and the gold medallion hanging from a chain around his neck. When appellant reached for something from his pocket, Mr. Garcia pulled away from him. Appellant then moved toward Mario Gonzales and stabbed him with a knife.

At approximately 11:30 p.m. on July 15, 1992, Steven Paredes and his friend Andrew Gonzalez were sitting in Mr. Paredes’s car watching a movie [1268]*1268at the Vineland Drive-In Theater in the City of Industry. Two men approached the driver’s side of the car and asked Mr. Paredes for a cigarette. When Mr. Paredes turned to respond, one of the men pointed something at his neck and told him to leave the vehicle. The other person said, “Exit the vehicle unless you want to die.” Mr. Paredes hesitated and was pulled from the car. One of the men went to the passenger side of the vehicle and asked Mr. Gonzalez if he wanted to die. Mr. Gonzalez got out of the car. The two men then entered the car and drove away.

Just after midnight that same night, appellant entered the Circle M Market in La Mirada and yelled, “This is a robbery. Give me everybody [sic] you got.” Appellant walked around the counter toward the cash register with a gun pointed in the air and demanded money. He shot a hole in the ceiling of the market. The clerk opened the cash register. Appellant reached in and removed approximately $80. A video camera in the store recorded the incident.

About 15 minutes later, a male with a shotgun entered a 7-Eleven convenience store in Brea. He fired the shotgun three times, walked up to the clerk and demanded that he open the cash register. The clerk did so and the man removed approximately $100.

Appellant was arrested in Buena Park in late July 1992 for an armed robbery which took place in Orange County. While in custody, he invoked his Miranda rights (Miranda v. Arizona (1966) 384 U.S. 436 [16 L.Ed.2d 694, 86 S.Ct. 1602, 10 A.L.R.3d 974]). Officers of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department arrested appellant for the American Legion assault incident, and assumed custody from the Buena Park Police Department on August 3, 1992. He was again advised of his Miranda rights, and waived them. Detective Esquerra of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department then told appellant that while he had been arrested for the American Legion assault incident, they also suspected he was involved in two armed robberies. After they told appellant he had been seen on video film, he admitted committing the armed robberies at the Circle M Market and the 7-Eleven store.

Appellant was charged by information in count 1 with assault with a deadly weapon (Pen. Code, § 245, subd. (a)(1)), with an allegation that he personally inflicted great bodily injury upon the victim; and in counts 2, 3, and 4 with second degree robbery (Pen. Code, § 211) with allegations that in counts 3 and 4 he personally used a gun during commission of the offense. Appellant was found guilty as charged, and appeals from the judgment of conviction.

[1269]*1269Discussion

I

Admissibility of Confessions

Appellant argues that evidence of his confession was inadmissible because his statement to Detective Esquerra was obtained after he had invoked his Miranda rights while in custody in Buena Park. We find no impropriety in the subsequent questioning by Detective Esquerra, and hence no error in the admission of the confession.

In Miranda v. Arizona, supra, 384 U.S. 436, the United States Supreme Court promulgated standards to safeguard the right against compelled self-incrimination guaranteed by the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments. Before a person in custody may be questioned by police, he must be informed that he has the right to remain silent, that any statement he makes may be used against him, and that he has the right to the presence of an attorney, either retained or appointed. (Id. at p. 444 [16 L.Ed.2d at p. 706].) “Once warnings have been given, the subsequent procedure is clear. If the individual indicates in any manner, at any time prior to or during questioning, that he wishes to remain silent, the interrogation must cease.” (Id. at p. 473-474 [16 L.Ed.2d at p. 723].) “If the individual states that he wants an attorney, the interrogation must cease until an attorney is present. At that time, the individual must have an opportunity to confer with the attorney and to have him present during any subsequent questioning. If the individual cannot obtain an attorney and he indicates that he wants one before speaking to police, they must respect his decision to remain silent.” (Id. at p. 474 [16 L.Ed.2d at p. 723].)

Miranda delineates two separate rights—the right to remain silent, and the right to have counsel present during interrogation. Later cases make clear that there are distinctions in the scope of these rights. In Michigan v. Mosley (1975) 423 U.S. 96 [46 L.Ed.2d 313, 96 S.Ct. 321], the court held that Miranda does not create a “proscription of indefinite duration upon any further questioning by any police officer on any subject, once the person in custody has indicated a desire to remain silent.” (Id. at pp. 102-103 [46 L.Ed.2d at p. 321].) It is the suspect’s “right to cut off questioning” that Miranda identified as crucial. (Id. at p. 105 [46 L.Ed.2d at p. 322].) Hence, “. . . the admissibility of statements obtained after the person in custody has decided to remain silent depends under Miranda on whether his ‘right to cut off questioning’ was ‘scrupulously honored.’ ” (423 U.S. at p. 104 [46 L.Ed.2d at p. 321].)

[1270]*1270The court recognized that Miranda afforded different treatment to the right to remain silent and the right to counsel, and expressly rejected the view that when a suspect invokes the right to remain silent, questioning on another crime is prohibited unless counsel is present. (Michigan v. Mosley, supra, 423 U.S. at p. 104, fn. 10 [46 L.Ed.2d at p. 321].) Under Miranda, it is only when the suspect states that he or she wants an attorney that all interrogation must cease until an attorney is present. (Ibid.)

The broader protection afforded a suspect who invokes the right to counsel rather than just the right to remain silent was emphasized by the Supreme Court in Edwards v. Arizona (1980) 451 U.S. 477 [68 L.Ed.2d 378, 101 S.Ct. 1880]. After noting the distinctions between the safeguards for the two separate rights discussed in the Mosley opinion, the court reconfirmed that “. . . it is inconsistent with Miranda

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22 Cal. App. 4th 1265, 27 Cal. Rptr. 2d 818, 94 Cal. Daily Op. Serv. 1354, 93 Daily Journal DAR 2331, 1994 Cal. App. LEXIS 150, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-deleon-calctapp-1994.