Is intent required to sustain a prior-murder special circumstance?

California, United States of America


The following excerpt is from People v. Wharton, 280 Cal.Rptr. 631, 53 Cal.3d 522, 809 P.2d 290 (Cal. 1991):

17 Defendant argues People v. Malone (1985) 165 Cal.App.3d 31, 211 Cal.Rptr. 210 supports his position, claiming it holds that intent to kill in the prior murder is required to sustain a prior-murder special circumstance. A close reading of that case, however, reveals that it merely held that to sustain a section 190.2, subdivision (a)(2) special circumstance, the present murder must be an intentional one. (But see, ante, p. 671, fn. 16 of 280 Cal.Rptr., p. 330, fn. 16 of 809 P.2d [intent to kill not required for felony-murder special circumstance].)

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