How have the courts treated the error of a prosecutor's interpretation of the law?

The majority begin their discussion of this issue by noting that defendant's failure to object bars review of this issue, and that the prosecutor's misstatement of the law cannot be characterized as misconduct. This portion of the majority's discussion is pointless, for this court has unanimously resolved that in cases of this type it will review the merits of defendant's contention despite trial counsel's failure to object or the prosecutor's putative good faith. As we explained in People v. Lucero (1988) 44 Cal.3d 1006, 1031, 245 Cal.Rptr. 185, 750 P.2d 1342 footnote 15, "[b]ecause this case was tried before ... Davenport, we do not describe the prosecutor's mistaken argument as misconduct. For the same reason, we could not treat a defense counsel's failure to object as incompetence or waiver. Our concern is not with the ethics of the prosecutor or the performance of the defense, but with the impact of the erroneous interpretation of the law on the jury."