Quiroz
People v. Quiroz
Opinion
Lead Opinion
Hoffstadt, J.
*68 Opinion
A jury unanimously agrees that a defendant is guilty of murder. Must all jurors either unanimously agree defendant is the killer, or unanimously agree that he aided and abetted the killer? Appellant Raul Becerra Quiroz (Quiroz) argues that Apprendi v. New Jersey (2000) 530 U.S. 466 [ 147 L.Ed.2d 435 , 120 S.Ct. 2348 ] (Apprendi) requires all jurors to agree on the same theory of legal liability. We disagree. We also reject Quiroz’s arguments that the People’s request for an aiding and abetting instruction deprived him of his right to counsel and that such an instruction may be given only if the People name the killer. We further conclude that Quiroz’s remaining arguments lack merit. We affirm his conviction for first degree murder.
FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY
The Crime
Early in the morning of August 27, 2005, Brian Szostek (Szostek) was shot four times while sitting in the rear passenger seat of a gold Pontiac. He was dumped in an alley in Oxnard and died soon thereafter.
Quiroz and Szostek were childhood friends. Several months prior to his death, Szostek had called Quiroz for the telephone numbers of two drug dealers. Unbeknownst to Quiroz, Szostek was…