Ashley

An information filed in Alameda County on May 23, 1984, charged Gregory Scott Ashley (hereafter appellant) with murder (Pen. Code, § 187) and rape (Pen. Code, § 261, subd. (2)). After his first trial ended in a mistrial with a deadlocked jury, a second trial resulted in a verdict of guilty of second degree murder, with an enhancement for firearm use, and unlawful sexual intercourse (Pen. Code, § 261.5), a lesser offense included in the charge of rape. On April 15, 1988, the court sentenced appellant to 15 years to life on the murder conviction and stayed sentences on the firearm enhancement and the conviction of unlawful intercourse.

Lastly, appellant maintains that the trial court erred in refusing to allow defense counsel to use a small tape recorder during trial. He explained that he needed sound recordings as personal notes during cross-examination of witnesses: “The reason I wanted to use this is that I find it very difficult to take accurate notes of my cross-examination because I’m concentrating on asking the question other than writing them down, and it interrupts the flow of my cross-examination to constantly write down what the witness says before I ask him the…