People v. White CA1/2

CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedMay 16, 2024
DocketA166488
StatusUnpublished

This text of People v. White CA1/2 (People v. White CA1/2) 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. White CA1/2, (Cal. Ct. App. 2024).

Opinion

Filed 5/16/24 P. v. White CA1/2 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 8.1115(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

FIRST APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION TWO

THE PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent, A166488 v. LATRAIL WHITE, (Alameda County Super. Ct. No. 22CR001348) Defendant and Appellant.

A jury convicted Latrail White of special circumstances murder and other offenses in connection with a drive-by shooting. On appeal, White contends his conviction must be reversed due to evidentiary and instructional errors. We affirm, but remand for the limited purpose of correcting the sentencing minute order and abstract of judgment. BACKGROUND Information In May 2022, the prosecution filed an information charging White with: (1) murder (Pen. Code, § 187, subd. (a))1 with the special circumstances that he discharged a firearm from a motor vehicle at another person outside the vehicle with the intent to cause death (§ 190.2, subd. (a)(21)) and discharged a firearm from a vehicle with the intent to inflict great bodily injury (§ 190,

1 All undesignated statutory references are to the Penal Code.

1 subd. (d)) (count 1); (2) shooting from a motor vehicle (§ 26100, subd. (c)) (count 2); (3) two counts of unlawful possession of a firearm (§ 29820, subd. (b)) (counts 3 & 4); and (4) carrying a loaded firearm on his person in a city (§ 25850, subd. (a)) (count 5). As enhancements to counts 1 and 2, the information alleged that White personally used a firearm (§§ 12022.5, subd. (a), 12022.53, subd. (b)) and discharged a firearm (§ 12022.53, subd. (c)), causing great bodily injury or death (§ 12022.53, subd. (d)), and personally inflicted great bodily injury (§ 12022.7). Evidence at Trial2 On the morning of July 24, 2021, R.J.3 was talking to Travis Ward on the sidewalk of 23rd Avenue between East 17th and Foothill Boulevard in Oakland, when a woman approached them. Ward began to show her how to ingest methamphetamine. At that point, R.J. walked away because he did not like the smell of methamphetamine. A couple minutes later, R.J. heard Ward whistle and saw him walk towards the street. R.J. heard Ward say, “You a hard man to catch up with,” but did not see who Ward was talking to. He next heard a man say, “Why are you patting your pockets?” Ward responded, “My phone,” or “I’m looking for my phone.” R.J. had known Ward for 15 years and had never seen him with any type of weapon. R.J. next heard several pops. He heard Ward moan, and realized Ward was being shot at. R.J. dove to the ground behind some parked cars to avoid being hit.

2 We provide an overview of the facts here and additional facts in

connection with our discussion of defendant’s claims. 3 R.J. appeared in custody after being arrested for failing to comply

with a prosecution subpoena to appear; he admitted he was a reluctant witness.

2 M.A.4 had known Ward for approximately 10 years. He described the area near 23rd Avenue and Foothill Boulevard as a neighborhood “hang out” area. M.A. was in his parked van on the corner of East 17th Street and 23rd Avenue on the morning of July 24, 2021. He saw Ward speaking to R.J. and a woman immediately before hearing four or five pops that sounded like gunshots. M.A. heard a car engine revving. When he looked up, he saw a blue two- or four-door Mercedes Benz sedan turn from southbound 23rd Avenue onto Foothill Boulevard. Ward was shot six times and died of multiple gunshot wounds. Police found a cell phone next to Ward’s left hand. Police also found six FN model 5.7-by-28-millimeter casings. A criminalist with the Oakland Police Department testified that she had examined tens of thousands of casings over the course of her 15-year career, and had seen FN model 5.7-by-28-millimeter casings approximately 20 times. Surveillance footage, motor vehicle records, and witness testimony connected White to the Mercedes used in the drive-by shooting. White was observed driving the Mercedes down 23rd Avenue past a vigil for Ward on the day of the murder. Michael Jaeger, a homicide investigator with the Oakland Police Department, testified that he authored a warrant for White’s arrest. Sheriff’s deputies arrested White as he was driving the Mercedes on Highway 580 near Berkeley on August 10, 2021. When White got out of the car, he had a Motorola G-Play cell phone in his hand which had a phone number ending in 5402.

4 M.A. was also a reluctant witness who appeared in custody after

being arrested for refusing to comply with a prosecution subpoena.

3 A search of the phone, which included Ward’s social media accounts, connected Ward to the scene and to a firearm capable of shooting the caliber of ammunition found at the scene. Using the call detail records and specialized location records for the 5402 number, police were able to establish “with a high degree of confidence” that on the day of the murder, July 24, 2021, the phone was “near the intersection of 23rd Ave, and Foothill Blvd.” in Oakland “at 9:21:02 a.m.” Additionally, between August 8, 2021, and August 9, 2021, internet searches for “Oakland homicide,” “homicide,” “murders in Oakland,” “1600 block of 23rd Avenue,” “Oakland surveillance cameras,” “new leads on Oakland homicides,” and “new homicide leads in Oakland, California” were conducted on the phone. White testified that he knew Ward through friends but did not “have a personal relationship with him.” He denied having any problems with Ward, and he denied killing him. White testified that he had picked up the Mercedes from his cousin shortly before being pulled over and arrested on August 10, 2021. White said the Motorola cell phone was in the Mercedes when he picked it up. His statement to the police that he did not know the passcode to the phone was truthful; he claimed that someone had changed the passcode since the last time he used the phone. Verdict and Sentencing The jury found White guilty on all counts. The jury found true the special circumstances and special allegations alleged in connection with the murder charge in count 1. As to count 2, which charged White with shooting from a motor vehicle, the jury found true the allegations that White personally caused great bodily injury (§ 12022.7, subd. (a)), personally and

4 intentionally discharged a firearm causing death (§ 12022.53, subd. (d)), and personally used a firearm (§ 12022.5, subd. (a)). On October 13, 2022, the trial court sentenced White to life without the possibility of parole, plus additional terms for the other offenses and the enhancements, some of which were stayed. DISCUSSION I. The Trial Court Did Not Err in Denying the Motion to Traverse the Search Warrants for the Call Detail Records and Contents of the Motorola Cell Phone

White contends that the trial court erred in denying his motion to suppress the call detail records and contents of the Motorola cell phone. He argues that “several pieces of important information were deliberately left out of the affidavits to the warrant applications,” and this information “would have seriously called into question the magistrate’s finding of probable cause.” We disagree. A. Additional Background Motion to Traverse Search Warrants White moved to quash the search warrants on the ground that each warrant was so devoid of probable cause that no reasonable officer would have relied upon it. (United States v. Leon (1984) 468 U.S. 897

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Franks v. Delaware
438 U.S. 154 (Supreme Court, 1978)
Illinois v. Gates
462 U.S. 213 (Supreme Court, 1983)
United States v. Leon
468 U.S. 897 (Supreme Court, 1984)
Maryland v. Garrison
480 U.S. 79 (Supreme Court, 1987)
People v. Souza
277 P.3d 118 (California Supreme Court, 2012)
People v. Eubanks
266 P.3d 301 (California Supreme Court, 2011)
People v. Scott
257 P.3d 703 (California Supreme Court, 2011)
People v. Jones
792 P.2d 643 (California Supreme Court, 1990)
People v. Zackery
54 Cal. Rptr. 3d 198 (California Court of Appeal, 2007)
In Re SC
41 Cal. Rptr. 3d 453 (California Court of Appeal, 2006)
People v. Oropeza
59 Cal. Rptr. 3d 653 (California Court of Appeal, 2007)
People v. Elize
84 Cal. Rptr. 2d 35 (California Court of Appeal, 1999)
People v. Halvorsen
165 P.3d 512 (California Supreme Court, 2007)
People v. Mitchell
26 P.3d 1040 (California Supreme Court, 2001)
People v. Sandoval
363 P.3d 41 (California Supreme Court, 2015)
People v. Simon
375 P.3d 1 (California Supreme Court, 2016)
Atkins v. City of Los Angeles
8 Cal. App. 5th 696 (California Court of Appeal, 2017)
People v. Westerfield
433 P.3d 914 (California Supreme Court, 2019)
People v. Beck
453 P.3d 1038 (California Supreme Court, 2019)
People v. Vargas
468 P.3d 1121 (California Supreme Court, 2020)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
People v. White CA1/2, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-white-ca12-calctapp-2024.