People v. Wilson CA1/1

Filed 10/15/14 P. v. Wilson CA1/1 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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 ONE

THE PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent, A138469 v. SIDNEY DAVID EUGENE WILSON, (Solano County Super. Ct. No. FCR287453) Defendant and Appellant.

Defendant Sidney David Eugene Wilson was convicted of second degree murder of his girlfriend. He contends the trial court erred in allowing improper cross examination of his character witnesses and admitting into evidence a letter containing hearsay. We affirm. I. BACKGROUND In a complaint filed September 12, 2011, defendant was charged with murder (Pen. Code,1 § 187, subd. (a)), possession of a firearm by a felon (§ 12021, subd. (a)(1)), and possession of ammunition (§ 12316, subd. (b)(1)). In connection with the murder charge, the complaint alleged an enhancement for personal use of a firearm. (§ 12022.53, subd. (d).) Defendant pleaded no contest to the weapons possession charges and proceeded to trial on the charge of murder and the firearm use enhancement. It is undisputed defendant shot his long-time girlfriend, Victoria C., on September 8, 2011. The issue at trial was the degree of the homicide.

1 All statutory references are to the Penal Code unless otherwise indicated.

The primary witness to the shooting was Victoria’s daughter, A.C. A.C. said she and Victoria had lived in the same home as defendant for about six years. During that time, Victoria and defendant had often argued. On the day of the incident, they argued on the telephone and later in the evening when riding in the car. After arriving home from the drive, Victoria went into the bedroom to change her clothes, while defendant went to the garage. At some point, defendant said to Victoria, “Would you come out to the garage real quick?” and “I need to talk to you.” A.C. found the request unusual in two ways. First, she noticed that defendant’s voice was “really, really calm.” Second, the two did not normally go to the garage when they needed to discuss things. Victoria responded, “I’ll come out if you just calm down.” After defendant promised he “just want[ed] to talk,” they left for the garage. Approximately five minutes later, Victoria screamed for A.C. On the way to the garage, A.C. heard “something outside [the house] that sounded loud.” On reflection, she decided it was a gunshot. When she appeared in the door of the garage, the pair was facing each other, “fighting and arguing.” Defendant was holding a gun. Victoria was holding a cell phone in one hand and the back of her neck with the other. Seeing A.C., Victoria told her to “Call 911.” Before A.C. left, defendant appeared to load the gun and then shot Victoria, and she collapsed to the ground. He turned and told A.C., “Go in the house.” A.C. did as she was told, but she retreated to a point in the house from which she could see into the garage. A.C. saw her mother lying on the ground, with defendant “just walking around her.” After A.C. left the window to safeguard her younger siblings, she heard another gunshot. In total, defendant fired four shots over a period of more than two minutes. Victoria died of multiple gunshot wounds to the head. Defendant admitted he and Victoria were sometimes violent toward one another. On the day of the shooting, he argued with her over the phone. He later told a coworker he was “going to kick [Victoria’s] ass.” That evening, defendant left his loaded gun on a table in the garage, although that was not his normal practice. In the course of the evening, he drank two six-inch bottles of vodka. During the argument in the garage, defendant said, he accused Victoria of infidelity, and she admitted to having an affair.