Is a prosecutor wrongfully accused of prejudicial misconduct in her closing argument in a murder trial?

California, United States of America


The following excerpt is from People v. Hovey, 244 Cal.Rptr. 121, 44 Cal.3d 543, 749 P.2d 776 (Cal. 1988):

Defendant next contends that the prosecutor committed prejudicial misconduct when, during her closing argument, she observed that [44 Cal.3d 572] although defendant had stipulated to the kidnapping and the killing, "he's never said anything to you about why, why he did these things." Later during the same argument, the prosecutor commented on the evidence regarding defendant's use of a knife to stab his victim, observing that defendant told his cellmate that he used a knife, and that "He's never told you anything different." According to defendant, the foregoing observations amounted to forbidden comments upon defendant's failure to testify in his own defense. (See Griffin v. California (1965) 380 U.S. 609, 85 S.Ct. 1229, 14 L.Ed.2d 106; People v. Vargas (1973) 9 Cal.3d 470, 475-476, 108 Cal.Rptr. 15, 509 P.2d 959.)

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