Jimenez

Defendant Mariano Jimenez was convicted by a jury of first degree murder (Pen. Code, § 187) and attempted murder (§§ 664/ 187). The jury also found that the defendant personally used a firearm, a handgun, in the commission of both the murder and the attempted murder (§ 12022.5). Defendant’s motion for a new trial was denied and he was sentenced to a total of 27 years in state prison. Relying primarily on Davis v. Alaska (1974) 415 U.S. 308 [ 39 L.Ed.2d 347 , 94 S.Ct. 1105 ] and People v. Adams (1983) 149 Cal.App.3d 1190 [ 197 Cal.Rptr. 623 ], defendant contends that the trial court committed prejudicial error when it did not permit defendant’s trial counsel to cross-examine two key prosecution witnesses on their possible parole or probation status. We proceed to examine this claim in the light of the distinctive facts of this case.

Background

Distilled to its essence, this proceeding concerns the killing of an innocent bystander by the defendant while defendant was chasing and shooting at a second victim. These violent events took place on July 14, 1983, at approximately 9:30 p.m. on 10th Avenue near 104th Street in the City of Inglewood. Dino Hearns (Hearns) was…