What constitutes prosecutorial misconduct in closing arguments of a criminal trial?

California, United States of America


The following excerpt is from People v. Cavazos, F069276 (Cal. App. 2016):

Due process is denied and the Fourteenth Amendment to the federal Constitution is violated when a prosecutor's conduct renders a criminal trial fundamentally unfair. (People v. Morales (2001) 25 Cal.4th 34, 44.) When a trial is not fundamentally unfair, prosecutorial misconduct under state law occurs when the prosecutor attempts to persuade the jury with deceptive or reprehensible methods. (Ibid.) During closing arguments, a prosecutor is permitted to discuss the evidence and comment on reasonable inferences drawn from the evidence. (Ibid.)

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