Calderon

The petitioner and a codefendant are charged with two counts of premeditated attempted murder. In a separate criminal proceeding arising out of a different episode, the codefendant and another person were charged with the execution-style murder of one person and attempted murder of another. The cases were consolidated, so that the charges against the petitioner are to be tried together with all charges against the codefendant. (Charges against the other person in the second episode were severed.) We granted an alternative writ to determine whether the consolidation presented a serious prospect of unfair prejudice to the petitioner, so that the prosecution’s motion to consolidate should have been denied. We conclude that under the facts presented, the likelihood of such prejudice has been shown. We shall order the trial court to vacate its order and deny the motion to consolidate.

Factual and Procedural Summary

Our summary of the facts relating to the charges in which both the petitioner and the codefendant are involved, which we refer to as the July 18 episode, is taken from the felony preliminary hearing at which both were held to answer. We have not been furnished a…