Love

Petitioner Michael Lynn Love seeks a peremptory writ of mandate directing the respondent superior court to grant his motion to recuse the office of the District Attorney of Sacramento County in a pending criminal action. We grant the writ. We conclude that, under the circumstances of this case, recusal of the major crimes section of the district attorney’s office, and not the entire office, is the appropriate remedy.

I

Petitioner stands accused, among other things, of two counts of first degree murder with allegations of special circumstances. (Pen. Code, §§ 187, 190.2.) Since petitioner was a juvenile at the time of the alleged murders he is not subject to the death penalty; however, the criminal proceedings could result in a sentence of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. (Pen. Code, §§ 190.2-190.5.)

In August 1979, Michael G. Arkelian, an assistant public defender in the county public defender’s office, was assigned to serve as defense attorney for petitioner. David Miller, a law student working as a legal research assistant, was assigned full time to assist Arkelian in the preparation and investigation of the case against petitioner. Miller worked…