People v. Allen-Houston CA2/7

INTRODUCTION

A jury convicted Anthony Allen-Houston of second degree murder and related crimes after he drove through a red light at 100 miles per hour while talking on his cell phone and crashed his car into another car, killing one person and injuring another. The trial court sentenced Allen-Houston to a prison term of 34 years to life. Allen-Houston argues the trial court abused its discretion in admitting a toxicology report that showed he had methamphetamine and amphetamine in his system at the time of the crash. He also argues substantial evidence did not support his murder conviction. We conclude that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in admitting the toxicology report and that substantial evidence supported his conviction for implied malice murder. Therefore, we affirm.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

A. Allen-Houston Runs a Red Light and Crashes into a Car On the evening of December 8, 2020 Juanita Johnson was driving westbound on Glenarm Street on her way back from dining at a restaurant. Johnson’s daughter Destiny Huston, Johnson’s 20-month-old granddaughter, and another passenger were in the car. Huston was seated directly behind her mother, and…