People v. Trujeque
188 Cal. Rptr. 3d 1
Cal.2015Background
- Defendant Trujeque was convicted in 1999 of Facundo murder (first degree), Apodaca murder (second degree), and Spartan Burgers robbery, with death penalty and multiple sentence enhancements, after a lengthy delay since the 1986–1998 crimes.
- The 1999 trial included a guilty plea history in 1971 for Rothenberg second-degree murder later used as a prior murder special-circumstance, which the defense challenged as an invalid Boykin/Tahl violation.
- Prosecution relied on a long-ago Rothenberg adjudication to support the 190.2(a)(2) multiple-murder special-circumstance; the defense moved to strike, arguing double jeopardy and invalid prior conviction.
- Apodaca murder refiling: after two dismissals in 1987, the People sought a third refiling in 1998 under §1387 and §1387.1, which the trial court found excusable neglect and retroactive applicability.
- This court reversed the Apodaca second-degree murder conviction and the multiple-murder special-circumstance finding, and reversed the death judgment, finding error in the retroactive application of §1387.1 and in using the invalid prior conviction.
- Additional issues included joinder of the Spartan Burgers robbery with the murders, rulings on Fifth Amendment privileges of witnesses, the admission of a Garcetti-letter and certain expert/testimony, and the propriety of admitting redacted letter evidence at guilt and penalty phases.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether the 1971 Rothenberg conviction used for the special-circumstance is invalid under double jeopardy | Breathes that Breed retroactively invalidates the prior jeopardy | There was forfeiture/waiver and no collateral challenge should be allowed | Breed retroactive; prior conviction set aside; death judgment reversed |
| Whether the 1998 refiling of Apodaca’s murder violated ex post facto or §1387/§1387.1 | §1387.1 retroactively allowed a third refiling after two dismissals | Retroactivity violates ex post facto; false revival of prosecution | §1387.1 not retroactive to revive twice-dismissed case; refiling improper; conviction reversed |
| Whether joinder of Spartan Burgers robbery with the two murders was improper | Joinder should be upheld due to same class of offenses and lack of prejudice | Severance required; joinder inflates prejudice and burden | Severance not required; joinder did not cause gross unfairness |
| Whether impeachment with the Rothenberg conviction, now invalid, violated due process | Impeachment evidence admissible under rules for credibility | Invalid prior conviction cannot be used to impeach credibility | Use of invalid conviction to impeach is reversible error but harmless here |
| Whether Fifth Amendment privilege rulings for Charlie and Elena violated defendant’s defense | Privileges properly applied to protect witnesses from self-incrimination | Privileges excluded critical mitigating evidence | No reversible error at guilt phase; penalty-phase challenges left unrevised due to reversal |
Key Cases Cited
- Breed v. Jones, 421 U.S. 519 (1975) (double jeopardy prevents prosecution after juvenile adjudication)
- In re Bryan, 16 Cal.3d 782 (1976) (retroactivity of Breed; double jeopardy rule applies retroactively)
- Horton, 11 Cal.4th 1048 (1995) (collateral challenges to prior convictions in special circumstances)
- Stogner v. California, 539 U.S. 607 (2003) (retroactive effect of revived prosecutions under a new rule)
- Teague v. Lane, 489 U.S. 288 (1989) (retroactivity exceptions for new criminal rules (watershed rules))
- Calder v. Bull, 3 U.S. (3 Dall.) 386 (1798) (calculus of retroactivity categories for ex post facto)
- Coffey, 67 Cal.2d 204 (1967) (improper impeachment with invalid conviction; due process concerns)
- Sumstine, 36 Cal.3d 909 (1984) (prior-conviction impeachment using CALJIC instructions)