People v. Williams

Johnny Ray Williams and David Stone appeal from judgments entered after a jury convicted them of burglary (Pen. Code, § 459). Appellants contend that the court erred when it (1) admitted into evidence a conversation recorded while they sat, under arrest, in a police car; (2) ruled that appellant Williams’ robbery prior was admissible for impeachment purposes; and (3) granted the prosecutor’s midtrial motion to amend the information. Appellants also contend the prosecutor committed misconduct and their trial counsels were incompetent. We affirm the judgments.

The Facts

Shortly after midnight, Linda Heath was in the upstairs bedroom of her townhouse. She heard something rustling in her backyard, and a metallic scratching at her living room window. Believing someone was trying to break in, she called police.

At the police dispatcher’s request, she remained on the line until he told her that police had arrived, and instructed her to let them in. As she went downstairs, she could still hear the metallic scratching. When she opened the door, she saw no one. She quietly closed it, and went back upstairs. The dispatcher then assured her the police had now arrived, and again…