Hill
(HC) Brownlee v. Hill
Opinion
Trial Court Opinion
BACKGROUND
I. Proceedings in the Trial Court
22 A. Preliminary Proceedings 23 Petitioner was charged in Sacramento County case number 16FE018278 with robbery, sex 24 crimes, and murder. Three special circumstances were alleged in relation to the murder: one for 25 26 1 A federal petition for writ of habeas corpus must name as respondent the state officer having custody of the petitioner. See 28 U.S.C. § 2254; Rule 2(a) of the Rules Governing Section 2254 Cases in the United States District Courts; Smith v. Idaho, 392 F.3d 350, 354-55 (9th Cir. 2004). Accordingly, James Hill, Warden of R.J. Donovan Correctional Facility (petitioner's current place of incarceration, see ECF No. 33), is substituted as respondent herein. murder in commission of robbery, and two for murder in commission of sex crimes (penetration of anus with an unknown object and penetration of genitals with an unknown object). The case went to trial. B. The Evidence Presented at Trial2 1. Prosecution Case a. The Crimes Sharen Brandow was a 69-year-old homeless woman. Around 5:00 p.m. on August 1, 2016, J. R., a Good Samaritan, bought…