People v. Jackson

—Defendant, Kenneth Jackson, Jr., appeals from a judgment of conviction entered on a jury verdict finding him guilty of *1674 attempted murder (Pen. Code, §§ 187, 664) and of assault with a firearm (Pen. Code, § 245, subd. (a)(2)), with findings on both counts that he personally used the firearm and did so with the intent to inflict great bodily injury (Pen. Code, §§ 12022.5, 12022.7).

The incident giving rise to the charges occurred late in the evening of October 1, 1988, on the campus at the University of California at Berkeley. The victim, Joel Dickson, was a Berkeley football player, who with other members of the team was attending a postgame dance at the Bear’s Lair. Defendant, who was not a student at the university, came to the dance where he met some friends, specifically Lamont Butcher, Carlos Garcia, Greg Tolbert, and Ferris Foreman.

Defendant and another acquaintance initiated a conversation with a young woman who turned out to be the pregnant wife of one of the football players, James Devers. Words were exchanged and the two groups continued to keep an eye on one another. Devers enlisted the support of Joel Dickson, his 262-pound teammate, in case the…

I respectfully dissent.

In my opinion the majority’s statement of facts places more emphasis than is justified on an equal responsibility for the confrontation which led to Dickson being shot. Certainly, the football players, their friends, relatives and supporters were at the dance to celebrate the victory of the Berkeley football team. On the other hand, the defendant, Greg Tolbert, Lament Butcher, Carlos Garcia, and Ferris Foreman were not students at the university or ardent supporters of the team and their actions indicate that they came as a group with the intent to cause trouble.

Thus, they brought at least two guns, a .32-caliber handgun and an Uzi. Further, they openly and deliberately sexually harassed a woman who was seven months pregnant, while she was peacefully dancing with a man who identified himself as her husband. When the married couple moved to the other side of the room, defendant’s group continued to behave in a confrontational manner toward the football players until the shooting occurred. One member of defendant’s group, Carlos Garcia, also harassed another woman at the victory party.

I further believe that the majority opinion fails to sufficiently…

POCHE, Acting P.J.

Defendant, Kenneth Jackson, Jr., appeals from a judgment of conviction entered on a jury verdict finding him guilty of attempted murder (Pen. Code, §§ 187, 664) and of assault with a firearm (Pen. Code, § 245, subd. (a)(2)), with findings on both counts that he personally used the firearm and did so with the intent to inflict great bodily injury (Pen. Code, §§ 12022.5, 12022.7).

The incident giving rise to the charges occurred late in the evening of October 1, 1988, on the campus at the University of California at Berkeley. The victim, Joel Dickson, was a Berkeley football player, who with other members of the team was attending a postgame dance at the Bear's Lair. Defendant, who was not a student at the university, came to the dance where he met some friends, specifically Lamont Butcher, Carlos Garcia, Greg Tolbert, and Ferris Foreman.

Defendant and another acquaintance initiated a conversation with a young woman who turned out to be the pregnant wife of one of the football players, James Devers. Words were exchanged and the two groups continued to keep an eye on one another. Devers enlisted the support of Joel Dickson, his 262-pound teammate, in…