Maury

A jury convicted defendant Robert Edward Maury for the first degree murders (Pen. Code, § 187) of Averill Weeden, Belinda Jo Stark and Dawn Berryhill, the assault on Stark with intent to commit rape (§ 220), the robbery (§211) of Berryhill, and the forcible rape (§261, subd. (2)) of Jacqueline H. It found true special circumstance allegations of multiple murder (§ 190.2, subd. (a)(3)) and robbery murder (§ 190.2, subd. (a) (17)(i)). After a penalty trial, the jury returned a verdict of death, and the trial court imposed that sentence. This appeal is automatic. (§ 1239, subd. (b) .) As will appear, we affirm the judgment in its entirety.

I. Facts

A. Guilt Phase

1. The Prosecution’s Case

a. Introduction

The prosecution presented a fact-intensive, circumstantial case of defendant’s guilt, which interconnected three murders and the rape of a fourth victim.

A central element in the case was the Shasta County Secret Witness program (Secret Witness), which was established as a telephone “hotline” to receive information from citizens about crimes committed in the county. A month after Weeden’s disappearance in 1985, an anonymous caller called the Secret Witness with…