Hamilton

Defendant appeals from an order of the Superior Court of Alameda County which was rendered after an evidentiary hearing. The purpose of such hearing was to determine the voluntariness of a particular statement made by defendant.

The factual background of this appeal shows that 15 years ago, in 1960, defendant was convicted of murder in the California superior court and sentenced to death. In 1961, the conviction was reversed by the California Supreme Court on grounds which have no bearing upon the instant appeal. (People v. Hamilton (1961) 55 Cal.2d 881 [ 13 Cal.Rptr. 649 , 362 P.2d 473 ].)

Defendant was retried and again convicted of murder and sentenced to death. In 1963, the California Supreme Court affirmed the conviction as to the issue of guilt, but reversed as to the issue of penalty and remanded the cause for retrial and redetermination of the question of penalty. (People v. Hamilton (1963) 60 Cal.2d 105 [ 32 Cal.Rptr. 4 , 383 P.2d 412 ].) In its opinion, the Supreme Court held that the trial court had erred in admitting evidence that defendant had offered to plead guilty in return for a life sentence. However, the court held that this error was harmless and did…