People v. Jackson

California Supreme Court Oct 23, 1973 No. Crim. 14749Published

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Holding. The court set aside the defendant's death penalty in accordance with federal constitutional requirements and affirmed the judgment of guilt, finding the defendant's 11-year delay in challenging the guilt phase for ineffective assistance of counsel to be inexcusable.

Issues

Whether the death penalty must be set aside under federal constitutional law.
Whether the defendant was denied effective assistance of counsel at the guilt phase due to a failure to raise a diminished capacity defense.
Whether the court should reduce the degree of murder to second degree based on evidence of diminished capacity.

Disposition. modified and affirmed

Quotations verified verbatim against the opinion

“As defendant’s death penalty must therefore be set aside, it is unnecessary to consider the claims of error arising out of his third penalty trial.”

“Defendant, by contrast, presents absolutely no justification for his 11-year delay in attacking the judgment of guilt on this ground.”

“The judgment, insofar as it provides for the penalty of death, is modified to provide a punishment of life imprisonment and, as so modified, is affirmed.”

Opinion

THE COURT.

Lawrence Akin Jackson was convicted of first degree murder and sentenced to death. The judgment was affirmed.

(People

Jackson

(1963) 59 Cal.2d 375 [29 Cal.Rptr. 505, 379 P.2d 937].) Thereafter, under the compulsion of

People

Morse

(1964) 60 Cal.2d 631 [36 Cal.Rptr. 201, 388 P.2d 33, 12 A.L.R.3d 810], the judgment was reversed insofar as it imposed the death penalty and was affirmed in all other respects.

(In re Jackson

(1964) 61 Cal.2d 500 [39 Cal.Rptr. 220, 393 P.2d 420].) Upon retrial of the penalty issue, defendant’s punishment was again fixed at death. On appeal the judgment imposing the death penalty was reversed under

Escobedo

Illinois

(1964) 378 U.S. 478 [12 L.Ed.2d 977, 84 S.Ct. 1758] and

People

Dorado

(1965) 62 Cal.2d 338 [42 Cal. Rptr. 169, 398 P.2d 361].

(People

Jackson

(1967) 67 Cal.2d 96 [60 Cal.Rptr. 248, 429 P.2d 600].) When the penalty issue was tried the third time, the punishment was once more fixed at death. The case is before us on automatic appeal. (Pen. Code, § 1239, subd. (b).)

People

Anderson

(1972) 6 Cal.3d 628 [100 Cal.Rptr. 152, 493 P.2d 880] this court held the death penalty violated our state constitutional prohibition against cruel or unusual punishment. (Cal. Const., art. I, § 6.)

People v. Jackson

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THE COURT.

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