Does a joint trial between appellant and Wilkins need to be consolidated?

California, United States of America

The following excerpt is from The PEOPLE V. NETTLES, B213854, No. SA066812 (Cal. App. 2010):

Appellant argues the trial court erroneously believed that (1) he and Wilkins were "jointly charged" within the meaning of Penal Code section 1098, ^¹⁰ and (2) Penal Code section 1098 mandated that appellant and Wilkins be jointly tried. However, even if appellant was not jointly charged and the section did not mandate joint trials in any event, the determination of whether to consolidate cases for trial is a matter within the trial court's discretion (People v. Geier (2007) 41 Cal.4th 555, 574, 576-578 (Geier)).

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Moreover, "[b]ecause consolidation ordinarily promotes efficiency, the law prefers it." (Id. at p. 578, quoting People v. Ochoa (1998) 19 Cal.4th 353, 409.)

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Does a joint trial between appellant and Wilkins need to be consolidated?

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