California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from People v. Gonzalez, A131631 (Cal. App. 2012):
credible, and of solid value." ' [Citation.] 'In reviewing the sufficiency of the evidence, we must determine "whether, after viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution, any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt." ' [Citation.] We must presume in support of the judgment the existence of every fact that the trier of fact could reasonably deduce from the evidence. [Citation.] 'The focus of the substantial evidence test is on the whole record of evidence presented to the trier of fact, rather than on " 'isolated bits of evidence.' " [Citation.]' [Citation.]" (People v. Medina (2009) 46 Cal.4th 913, 919 (Medina), original italics.)
"Attempted murder requires the specific intent to kill and the commission of a direct but ineffectual act toward accomplishing the intended killing." (People v. Lee (2003) 31 Cal.4th 613, 623.) In finding defendant guilty as an aider and abettor, the court focused on the foreseeability of the attempted murder, an indication that it was relying on the natural and probable consequences doctrine, as summarized in Medina, supra, 46 Cal.4th at page 920: " 'A person who knowingly aids and abets criminal conduct is guilty of not only [of] the intended crime [target offense] but also of any other crime the perpetrator actually commits [nontarget offense] that is a natural and probable consequence of the intended crime. The latter question is not whether the aider and abettor actually foresaw the additional crime, but whether, judged objectively, it was reasonably foreseeable. [Citation.]' [Citation.] Liability under the natural and probable consequences doctrine 'is measured by whether a reasonable person in the defendant's position would have or should have known that the charged offense was a reasonably foreseeable consequence of the act aided and abetted.' [Citation.]" (Original italics.)
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