People v. Smith

Introduction

John of Gaunt:

The dying declaration stands as one of the earliest recognized exceptions to the rule excluding most hearsay evidence from trial proceedings, and the foundation for this exception is deeply rooted in policy considerations of human philosophy and psychology. Yet, since well before the enactment of the Evidence Code in 1967, appellate courts have not addressed the question of what instruction, if any, the trial court should provide the jury in its evaluation of such evidence. In this case, although the court did not misstate the law in its sua sponte pronouncement, we conclude that the jury should not have received any instruction on the point. However, we find the error did not result in a miscarriage of justice, and affirm defendant’s conviction for first degree murder (Pen. Code, § 187).

Factual and Procedural Background

The victim, Miles Weary, received fatal injuries shortly after 11 p.m. on February 11, 1986. He had just finished putting gas in his car at a station on the corner of Normandie Avenue and Century Boulevard. Two friends, Bruce Browder and Gregory Haney, were with him. As Weary was about to drive onto Normandie, a black…