People v. Frandsen
245 Cal. Rptr. 3d 658
Cal. Ct. App. 5th2019Background
- Defendant Benjamin Frandsen participated in events at Huang's home where two victims (Wertzberger and Ne'eman) were held captive, later found buried and dead; Frandsen gave multiple inconsistent statements admitting varying involvement.
- Frandsen was tried several times; after earlier reversals and retrials, he was convicted (third trial) of second-degree murder (Ne'eman) and involuntary manslaughter (Wertzberger) and sentenced to 19 years to life.
- Evidence included eyewitness testimony placing Frandsen at the scene, his admissions to friends and to FBI agents, phone/credit-card activity, and the discovery of the bodies.
- The prosecution relied in part on second-degree felony-murder liability predicated on kidnapping for extortion; the jury also received CALCRIM 541A (felony-murder) including a sentence that kidnapping continues until the kidnapper reaches a place of temporary safety.
- At sentencing the court imposed victim restitution (initially $11,749.20, later an additional $16,549 ordered) and various assessments and a $10,000 restitution fine; the abstract initially omitted the additional restitution amount (court ordered correction).
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument (Frandsen) | Defendant's Argument (People) | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether California second-degree felony-murder rule is unconstitutionally vague under Johnson | Johnson renders the rule vague because it requires abstract, categorical assessment detached from real-world facts | California uses a statutory-elements (categorical) approach that avoids Johnson's residual-clause defects | Rejected: rule is not unconstitutionally vague; elements-based analysis is permissible and differs from ACCA residual clause (affirmed) |
| Whether CALCRIM 541A sentence that "kidnapping continues until ... place of temporary safety" misstated law | Instruction misstated law because kidnapping for extortion completes upon seizure with intent to extort | The continuous-transaction doctrine and authority (Barnett, Burney, Cavitt) support that kidnapping can continue until release/place of safety | Forfeiture aside, instruction did not misstate law; sentence was correct |
| Sufficiency of evidence that Frandsen aided and abetted kidnapping for extortion (predicate for felony-murder) | No evidence Frandsen aided/abetted the kidnapping; he arrived after kidnapping begun | Evidence showed Frandsen participated in guarding/intimidating victims, planned contacting families for extortion, and the crime continued when he joined; aiding-and-abetting can arise during commission | Affirmed: substantial evidence supports aiding-and-abetting kidnapping for extortion |
| Whether prosecutor committed prejudicial misconduct in closing argument | Prosecutor misstated charges/leniency invoked to push conviction; counsel ineffective for not objecting | Remarks were argument overstating the evidence of greater culpability but did not misstate reasonable doubt; jury instructed on standard | No reversible misconduct; trial counsel's failure to object did not establish ineffective assistance |
Key Cases Cited
- Johnson v. United States, 135 S. Ct. 2551 (U.S. 2015) (invalidated ACCA residual clause as unconstitutionally vague)
- People v. Chun, 45 Cal.4th 1172 (Cal. 2009) (discusses California felony-murder rule and implied malice)
- People v. Hansen, 9 Cal.4th 300 (Cal. 1994) (uses elements-based analysis to find felony inherently dangerous)
- People v. Cavitt, 33 Cal.4th 187 (Cal. 2004) (continuous-transaction doctrine endorsing felony-murder liability through flight/place-of-safety)
- People v. Barnett, 17 Cal.4th 1044 (Cal. 1998) (kidnapping continues until release/place of temporary safety)
- People v. Cooper, 53 Cal.3d 1158 (Cal. 1991) (accomplice liability may arise during continuing commission of offense)