California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from People v. Lopez, 52 Cal.App.4th 233, 60 Cal.Rptr.2d 511 (Cal. App. 1997):
7 Under the provisions of Penal Code section 1118 and 1118.1, a defendant may move for a judgment of acquittal after the close of the prosecution's evidence in a case tried without a jury and at the close of evidence on either side in a case tried before a jury. If the motion is denied, "the defendant may offer evidence without first having reserved that right." (Pen.Code, 1118, 1118.1.) "The standard applied by a trial court in ruling upon a motion for judgment of acquittal pursuant to section 1118.1 is the same as the standard applied by an appellate court in reviewing the sufficiency of the evidence to support a conviction, that is, 'whether from the evidence, including all reasonable inferences to be drawn therefrom, there is any substantial evidence of the existence of each element of the offense charged.' " (People v. Crittenden (1994) 9 Cal.4th 83, 139, fn. 13, 36 Cal.Rptr.2d 474, 885 P.2d 887.)
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