Montes

INTRODUCTION

Responding to a call reporting gunshots in a remote part of Corona, police discovered the body of 16-year-old Mark Walker in the open trunk of his car. Walker had been shot five times at close range. The prosecution’s theory was that Walker had been robbed, carjacked, and kidnapped by defendant, by two of his codefendants at trial, Ashley Gallegos and Travis Hawkins, and by Miguel Garcia, who was a juvenile at the time of the murder.2 Apparently, the foursome carjacked and kidnapped Walker because they needed a ride to a birthday party for codefendant Salvador Varela. They shoved Walker into his trunk and drove Walker’s car to the party in Corona, where they stayed briefly. With Walker still in the trunk, they drove Walker’s car to a nearby isolated location, while Varela followed in his van. Once there, a member of the group shot Walker as he tried to get out of the trunk. The group abandoned Walker’s car, and Varela drove them back to the party. Several prosecution witnesses, including Varela’s brother

2 Garcia was not identified by name until halfway through the trial, and was not apprehended until the beginning of defendant’s penalty phase. The record does…