Does a defendant have to plead guilty to second degree murder and voluntary manslaughter under the accusatory pleading test?

California, United States of America


The following excerpt is from People v. Negrete, B265670 (Cal. App. 2017):

A trial court has a duty to instruct on all lesser included offenses when the evidence raises a question as to whether all of the elements of the charged offense are present, but not when there is no evidence that the offense is less than that charged. (People v. Valdez (2004) 32 Cal.4th 73, 115.) Where, as in the instant case, the accusatory pleading charges a defendant with murder "with malice aforethought," second degree murder and voluntary manslaughter constitute lesser included offenses of felony murder "as charged" in the information under the accusatory pleading test, and a trial court must instruct on second degree murder or manslaughter as lesser included offenses where the jury could reasonably conclude that these offenses, but not felony murder, were committed. (People v. Banks (2014) 59 Cal.4th 1113, 1159-1160, abrogated on another point by People v. Scott (2015) 61 Cal.4th 363, 391, fn. 3.)

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