Coleman

A jury found defendants guilty of first degree robbery. They appeal, contending that (1) the trial court prejudicially restricted their cross-examination of the complaining witness; (2) a statement of defendant Coleman was received in evidence in violation of Miranda v. Arizona (1966) 384 U.S. 436 [ 16 L.Ed.2d 694 , 86 S.Ct. 1602 , 10 A.L.R.3d 974 ]; and (3) the trial court should have instructed the jury, sua sponte, on the degrees of robbery and on lesser included offenses.

The Evidence

The victim, Phillip Harich, was hitchhiking along Interstate 80, about dusk, when he was given a ride by defendants in a 1962 beige Ford Galaxie 4-door sedan driven by Coleman. At defendants’ direction, Harich entered the right front door of the car and took his seat at the window, with Browning sitting next to the driver.

Harich, a 17-year-old Canadian alien, had left Canada 10 days earlier and traveled down Interstate 5 to the Haight-Ashbury district of San Francisco. On the evening in question, he was hitchiking back to British Columbia. Unfamiliar with the area, and confused by the highway interchanges, Harich was trying to get onto Interstate 5 when he was picked up by the…