Chavez

Defendant appeals from a judgment after trial by the court finding him guilty of voluntary manslaughter. (Pen. Code, § 192, subd. 1.) The sole contention on appeal is whether the trial court committed reversible error when it ordered defendant to turn over to the prosecution statements given by defendant’s witnesses. We have concluded that the trial court erred but that the error was not prejudicial.

In order to place the rationale for our conclusion in the proper perspective, we proceed to set out the salient facts. On Saturday, October 17, 1970, at approximately 8 p.m., Mrs. Eileen Bentley went to Frank’s Oasis Bar in Oakland. She joined her friends Bill and Jean Corbett who had been there since 4 p.m. At approximately 11 p.m., Mrs. Bentley’s son Richard appeared at the entrance of the bar and asked one of the customers to call his mother over. When she came to the door Richard asked her for 50 cents, which she gave him, and he then departed.

At approximately 1 a.m., Richard returned to the bar in an intoxicated condition, again called his mother to the door, and asked her for another 50 cents. He was accompanied by Jerry Hummingbird, Raymond Hummingbird and Dennis…