Does a prosecutor's analogy for "deciding whether to stop at a yellow light" constitute a "cold, calculated judgment"?

California, United States of America


The following excerpt is from People v. Lopez, G050281 (Cal. App. 2015):

little or no consideration, as phrased, the prosecutor's analogy is not a misdescription of deliberation and premeditation. The prosecutor's analogy described a situation in which the driver took the opportunity to consider his or her course of action: The driver considered whether to brake or drive through the light, whether police officers were present, whether he or she would be late, and whether the driver might be struck by another car "zooming on the other side." Although the decision whether to drive through a yellow light might be made quickly, in the analogy, it was the product of careful thought and weighing of considerations for and against the proposed course of action. (People v. Carasi (2008) 44 Cal.4th 1263, 1306 ["willful, deliberate, and premeditated murder involves a cold, calculated judgment, including one arrived at quickly"].)

A similar analogy was upheld in People v. Avila (2009) 46 Cal.4th 680, 715: "Nor, contrary to defendant's assertion, did the prosecutor argue that 'the "cold, calculated" judgment of murder is the equivalent of deciding whether to stop at a yellow light or proceed through the intersection.' Rather, the prosecutor used the example of assessing one's distance from a traffic light, and the location of surrounding vehicles, when it appears the light will soon turn yellow and then red, and then determining based on this information whether to proceed through the intersection when the light does turn yellow, as an example of a 'quick judgment' that is nonetheless 'cold' and 'calculated.' He then immediately said, 'Deciding to and moving forward with the decision to kill is similar, but I'm not going to say in any way it's the same. There's great dire consequences that have a difference here.'" Here too, the prosecutor used the yellow light analogy as an example of a "'quick judgment,'" based on available information, that is "nonetheless 'cold' and 'calculated.'" (Ibid.)

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