People v. Peterson CA3

BACKGROUND

We granted defendant’s motion to incorporate the record and opinion from the direct appeal of her conviction (People v. Peterson (2012) 211 Cal.App.4th 1072 (Peterson)), which sets forth a detailed recitation of the underlying facts.

1 Undesignated statutory section references are to the Penal Code.

1 Jeanette Mariedth was murdered in 2005. (Peterson, supra, 211 Cal.App.4th at p. 1074.) Defendant and her codefendant, Scott Varner, were charged with premeditated murder, second degree robbery, kidnapping for robbery, kidnapping for carjacking, and carjacking. (Ibid.) The information also alleged the special circumstances that the murder was committed in the course of those additional offenses. (Ibid.) In 2008, defendant pleaded guilty to second degree murder and agreed to testify against Varner in exchange for a sentence of 15 years to life in prison. (Peterson, supra, 211 Cal.App.4th at p. 1075.) According to defendant, while Mariedth was giving them a ride in her car, Varner threatened Mariedth with a knife and demanded money. (Id. at pp. 1077-1078.) Defendant said that when Varner told her they had to kill Mariedth, defendant refused to participate. (Id. at p.…