Ruiz

— The issue in this case is the sufficiency of evidence at a preliminary hearing to establish probable cause for holding the petitioner to answer felony charges and to support the denial of his subsequent motion to dismiss. Petitioner argues that the declarant, whose statement was recounted by a qualified law enforcement officer, was a coparticipant in the offense, and hence that his statements were too unreliable to establish probable cause unless corroborated.

We conclude that the witness was not shown to be a coparticipant as a matter of law, and hence that no corroboration was required. The testimony of the peace officer pursuant to Proposition 115 was sufficient to establish the requisite probable cause.

Factual and Procedural Summary

Appellant is charged by information with one count of murder (Pen. Code, § 187; all further statutory references are to the Penal Code unless otherwise indicated).

The sole witness at the preliminary hearing was William Newmann, a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department detective assigned to the homicide bureau. He was the investigating officer for the drive-by shooting in which the victim in this case was killed. Detective Newmann…