Shaw v. Pitchess

324 F. Supp. 781, 1969 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 13704
CourtDistrict Court, C.D. California
DecidedNovember 26, 1969
DocketNo. 69-2113
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 324 F. Supp. 781 (Shaw v. Pitchess) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, C.D. California primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Shaw v. Pitchess, 324 F. Supp. 781, 1969 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 13704 (C.D. Cal. 1969).

Opinion

ORDER DENYING PETITION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS

CURTIS, District Judge.

Petitioner seeks habeas corpus relief from his 1965 state court conviction for violation of California Penal Code § 288a [oral copulation]. Upon appeal, the District Court of Appeal affirmed the conviction and a petition for rehearing was denied. Petitioner then petitioned the Supreme Court of the State of California for rehearing, which was denied. Subsequently, his appeal to the Supreme Court of the United States was dismissed and his petition for certiorari denied, 395 U.S. 211, 89 S.Ct. 1772, 23 L.Ed.2d 213.

Since the petition raises no question of fact but is based upon alleged errors occurring at the time of the trial, no evidentiary hearing is required and none has been sought.

The court has before it the entire record of the trial, including the reporter’s transcript, which we have read in its entirety. We have also read the opinion of the District Court of Appeal, which we find states the facts accurately and completely.

Since all questions raised here have been considered and decided by the District Court of Appeal, and since we agree completely with that court’s conclusions, we can do no better than to adopt, as our own, the District Court of Appeal’s opinion in so far as it relates to the questions here raised.

[782]*782That portion of the opinion thus adopted follows:

“This appeal followed a verdict finding the defendant guilty of violating section 288a of the Penal Code and imposition of sentence.1
“The facts are that one Huddleston, manager of Coffee Dan's restaurant in Santa Monica, contacted the police department of that city and complained about the use of the restaurant’s restroom as a meeting place of homosexuals. At the suggestion of the police, Huddleston had the door of the men’s restroom commode removed, thus leaving the stall enclosed on three sides only. A false ventilator aperture was placed in the wall of the room. This louvred opening permitted visibility into the restroom from a refrigeration room. The police were given access to this observation facility for the purpose of surveillance of persons frequenting the restroom.
“By placement of the peephole, the toilet could be viewed much as it could from other parts of the room. On March 19, 1965, in company with Officer Sullivan, Officer Sutter of the Santa Monica Police Department was on duty and present at the peephole, observing the activities within his view in the restroom. At about 11:55 p. m., Sutter saw the defendant enter the room and proceed as though to use one of the facilities. Some five minutes later, codefendant Peralta entered and addressed himself to the urinal. Peralta looked over his shoulder in the direction of defendant. Then Peralta turned to face the defendant and performed certain acts which the defendant mimicked while also making other gestures with his tongue. After an interruption and cessation of activity following entry of a third person to the room, a repeat performance occurred, culminating in Peralta’s proceeding to the area of the defendant and consummating the criminal act in cooperation with the defendant. The prohibited junction between the two men was observed for some one or two seconds by Sutter before he and Sullivan left their point of vantage, proceeded to the restroom, entered, and arrested both participants.

A statement as to constitutional rights was duly given to defendant and codefendant, and each indicated an understanding thereof.2

Some 15 minutes later, while at the booking area of the Santa Monica jail, defendant was asked if Peralta had solicited him in the men’s room. Defendant said: ‘Well, yes. Any time you go in there somebody is always showing you something.’ Peralta was separately asked if defendant had solicited him. Peralta said: ‘Well, yes. He was playing with hisself [sic].’ These statements were admitted at trial over objection of defense counsel.

“The contentions of defendant on appeal are several. Throughout the whole of the briefs is the theme of incredibility and insufficiency of the prosecution’s evidence, but defendant specifically states that he makes no contention of error based upon insufficiency of the evidence. Though we, like the Attorney General, read the arguments as conflicting with defendant’s specific denial, we accept his statement.

“One contention of defendant is that the prosecution of defendant violated his right to equal protection, in that ‘the law is enforced only against males engaging in oral copulation with each other.’ The argument is unsupported by proof that the law is applied in a discriminatory manner. There is no evidence showing intentional or purposeful discrimination. (People v. Gray, 254 Cal.App.2d [256] [63 Cal.Rptr. 211].)

[783]*783“Though the defendant makes other contentions as to the uneonstitutionality of section 288a of the Penal Code, they are without merit, and a review of cases cited is not warranted. (People v. Roberts, 256 Cal.App.[2d] [488] [64 Cal. Rptr. 70].)

“It is contended that the hearsay statement of defendant Peralta was erroneously admitted. As we have recited, both the defendant and codefendant made extrajudicial statements which were admitted. At the time of admission of each statement, the trial judge instructed that the statement of each was admitted only as against the declarant. The codefendant’s statement was properly objected to as one implicating the defendant. The statements of each party related to an accusation or solicitation by the other to commit the criminal act, and hence, not a true admission of the act itself. The extrajudicial statement by the co-defendant, however, implicating the defendant in any way was in violation of the rule expressed in People v. Aranda, 63 Cal.2d 518, 530-531 [47 Cal.Rptr. 353, 407 P.2d 265].3 This rule is made applicable to the instant case by People v. Charles, 66 Cal.2d 330, 335 [57 Cal.Rptr. 745, 425 P.2d 545]. In People v. Powell, 67 Cal.2d 32, 57 [59 Cal.Rptr. 817, 429 P.2d 137], it is said: ‘The Aranda rule operates, of course, even when each statement is properly admissible against the declarant.’

Since the opinion in Aranda, the United States Supreme Court considered the issue and declared the error to be one of constitutional dimension. Bruton v. U. S. [391 U.S. 123, 88 S.Ct. 1620], 20 L.Ed 476 at 479 states that the admission of an extrajudicial statement by a codefendant which implicates another defendant is a denial of the right of cross-examination secured by the confrontation clause of the Sixth Amendment. Thus, since the trial of this case and since its briefing on appeal, both the Supreme Court of California and that of the United States have declared that what defendant here objects to is error. It being a ‘constitutional’ error, the rule of Chapman v. California, 386 U.S. 18 [87 S.Ct. 824, 17 L.Ed.2d 705] is applicable.4 In light of defendant’s admissible statement, the erroneous admission of codefendant’s statement added nothing of substance.

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324 F. Supp. 781, 1969 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 13704, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/shaw-v-pitchess-cacd-1969.