Sanchez

A jury convicted appellant, Francisco J. Sanchez, of first degree murder. He appeals his conviction contending the trial court erred in failing to advise the jurors of their power to nullify the verdict and coerced the verdict by warning that any juror who could not follow the law would be excused from the jury. In addition, he claims defense counsel rendered ineffective assistance by failing to object to prejudicial and irrelevant gang evidence. Finally, appellant argues the 1994 revised version of the CALJIC instruction on reasonable doubt was constitutionally flawed.

We hold a trial court is not required to instruct on the jury’s power of nullification. We also conclude the appellate record does not affirmatively establish counsel’s performance was deficient or that appellant suffered prejudice from counsel’s alleged failure to object to admission of gang evidence. We further find the instruction on reasonable doubt is not constitutionally deficient. Accordingly, we affirm the judgment of conviction.

Facts and Proceedings Below

The victim, Jesus Romero, was a professor of Spanish at East Los Angeles Community College. In 1994 he lived alone in a new two-story home…

I respectfully dissent.

Before presenting my reasons for dissenting, however, I want to make it crystal clear what I am and am not contending. I am not arguing trial courts do or should have a duty to instruct jurors they have the power of jury nullification. That question is well settled, as explained both in the majority opinion and later in this dissent. There clearly is no such duty. What this case presents, however, is the near opposite issue—may the trial judge instruct the jurors they do not have that power (even though they do). Both sides agree what the trial judge told these jurors in this case is the functional equivalent of such an instruction. Whether such an instruction is permissible appears to be an issue of first impression in California and quite possibly the United States.

This case also presents a related issue, again of first impression. May the trial court threaten to remove jurors in the midst of deliberations if they engage or propose to engage in jury nullification? Clearly the court is entitled to remove jurors who prior to or during presentation of the evidence indicate an intent to engage in jury nullification just as it could remove jurors who…

A jury convicted appellant, Francisco J. Sanchez, of first degree murder. He appeals his conviction contending the trial court erred in failing to advise the jurors of their power to nullify the verdict and coerced the verdict by warning that any juror who could not follow the law would be excused from the jury. In addition, he claims defense counsel rendered ineffective assistance by failing to object to prejudicial and irrelevant gang evidence. Finally, appellant argues the 1994 revised version of the CALJIC instruction on reasonable doubt was constitutionally flawed.

We hold a trial court is not required to instruct on the jury's power of nullification. We also conclude the appellate record does not affirmatively establish counsel's performance was deficient or that appellant suffered prejudice from counsel's alleged failure to object to admission of gang evidence. We further find the instruction on reasonable doubt is not constitutionally deficient. Accordingly, we affirm the judgment of conviction.

The victim, Jesus Romero, was a professor of Spanish at East Los Angeles Community College. In 1994 he lived alone in a new two-story home in Monterey Park.…