Can a jury consider an escape attempt as an aggravating factor at the penalty phase?

California, United States of America


The following excerpt is from People v. Carrera, 261 Cal.Rptr. 348, 49 Cal.3d 291, 777 P.2d 121 (Cal. 1989):

These instructions, viewed in their entirety, effectively instructed the jury not to consider the escape evidence. The instruction to consider all evidence admitted at the guilt phase was limited by the directive to follow specific instructions given at the penalty phase in the event of conflict. The flight instruction given at the guilt phase could not have been "[found] to be applicable to this [penalty] part of the trial" as defendant's guilt was no longer in issue. And the jury was specifically told that the only evidence of other criminal activity it could consider was that relating to the charges of battery and threatening a witness. (See People v. Robertson (1982) 33 Cal.3d 21, 55, fn. 19, 188 Cal.Rptr. 77, 655 P.2d 279.) In these circumstances, defendant's claim that the jury was instructed to consider the escape attempt as an aggravating factor is too speculative to be accepted. (Cf. Miranda, supra, 44 Cal.3d at p. 102 & fn. 25, 241 Cal.Rptr. 594, 744 P.2d 1127.)

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