Jarmon

Appellant Phillip Carlos Jarmon was sentenced to 69 years to life in prison and ordered to pay $10,000 in restitution after a bifurcated trial pursuant to Penal Code section 1026 on multiple charges of murder, vehicular manslaughter and possession of a controlled substance. He contends in this appeal that the evidence is insufficient to demonstrate malice, that he was not advised of and did not waive his right to a jury on the issue of his sanity, and that the sentence imposed by the trial court was incorrect in several respects. He also contends on appeal and in a related petition for writ of habeas corpus, that his trial counsel’s failure to introduce expert evidence of his lack of capacity to harbor malice at the guilt phase of his trial deprived him of his right to effective assistance of counsel. After review, we affirm.

I

It is undisputed that on August 12, 1989, appellant rear-ended a car, killing four people and injuring two others. It is also undisputed that at the time of the accident appellant was driving while under the influence of phencyclidine (PCP) and alcohol. The only issue which appellant disputed at trial was whether the evidence demonstrated that…