Valdez

I. FACTS

A. Guilt Phase On April 22, 1995, the bodies of three adults – Anthony ―Dido‖ Moreno, his sister, Maria Moreno, and Gustavo ―Tito‖ Aguirre – and two of Maria‘s children – five-year-old Laura Moreno and six-month-old Ambrose Padilla – were found at Maria‘s apartment on Maxson Road in El Monte, California.2 The evidence presented at trial established that defendant, who was a member of the Sangra street gang, shot and killed Anthony and Gustavo while his codefendant and fellow Sangra gang member Jimmy Palma shot and killed Maria and the children. 1. Prosecution Evidence The Mexican Mafia was formed in 1957 as a prison gang and, by 1977, controlled most of the criminal activity inside California‘s prisons. Eventually, it extended its influence outside of the prison system and came to exert control over virtually all Hispanic street gangs in Southern California, including Sangra and El Monte Flores. Hispanic gang members are essentially ―soldiers‖ of the Mexican Mafia and would probably be beaten up or killed for refusing to carry out a Mexican Mafia order. Mexican Mafia members take a ―blood oath‖ when they join and ―death is the only way out‖; those who attempt to leave…

A jury convicted defendant Richard Valdez of five counts of first degree murder (Pen. Code, §§ 187, subd. (a), 189) 1 and, as to each count, found true special circumstance allegations of multiple murder (§ 190.2, subd. (a)(3)) and gang and weapon enhancement allegations (§§ 186.22, subd. (b)(1), (2), 12022, subd. (a)(1), 12022.5, subd. (a)). The jury returned a verdict of death as to each of the victims. The trial court denied the automatic application to modify the verdict (§ 190.4, subd. (e)) and sentenced defendant to death for the five murders. This appeal is automatic. (§ 1239, subd. (b).) We affirm the judgment.

*94 I. Facts

A. Guilt Phase

On April 22, 1995, the bodies of three adults—Anthony “Dido” Moreno, his sister, Maria Moreno, and Gustavo “Tito” Aguirre—and two of Maria’s children—five-year-old Laura Moreno and six-month-old Ambrose Padilla— were found at Maria’s apartment on Maxson Road in El Monte, California. 2 The evidence presented at trial established that defendant, who was a member of the Sangra street gang, shot and killed Anthony and Gustavo while his codefendant and fellow Sangra gang member Jimmy Palma shot and killed Maria and the…

I join today’s opinion and write separately to add two comments concerning the trial court’s restriction on voir dire of prospective jurors. (See maj. opn., ante, at pp. 164-169.)

I.

As the court notes, we said in People v. Cash (2002) 28 Cal.4th 703 [ 122 Cal.Rptr.2d 545 , 50 P.3d 332 ] that “death-qualification voir dire must avoid two extremes. On the one hand, it must not be so abstract that it fails to identify those jurors whose death penalty views would prevent or substantially impair the performance of their duties as jurors in the case being tried. On the other hand, it must not be so specific that it requires the prospective jurors to prejudge the penalty issue based on a summary of the mitigating and aggravating evidence likely to be presented. [Citation.] In deciding where to strike the balance in a particular case, trial courts have considerable discretion. [Citations.]” (Id. at pp. 721-722.)

In exercising such discretion, trial courts should be mindful that the risks on the two sides of the balance are not symmetrical. If voir dire is too abstract, it may fail to identify a prospective juror whose views on the death penalty prevent him or her from impartially…