What is the test for unanimous verdict in a criminal case?

California, United States of America


The following excerpt is from People v. Gutierrez, B256151 (Cal. App. 2015):

"In a criminal case, a jury verdict must be unanimous. [Citations.] . . . Additionally, the jury must agree unanimously the defendant is guilty of a specific crime. [Citation.]" (People v. Russo (2001) 25 Cal.4th 1124, 1132.) "It is established that some assurance of unanimity is required where the evidence shows that the defendant has committed two or more similar acts, each of which is a separately chargeable offense, but the information charges fewer offenses than the evidence shows. [Citation.]" (People v. Sutherland (1993) 17 Cal.App.4th 602, 611-612.) Thus, "if one criminal act is charged, but the evidence tends to show the commission of more than one such act, 'either the prosecution must elect the specific act relied upon to prove the charge to the jury, or the court must instruct the jury that it must unanimously agree that the defendant committed the same specific criminal act.' [Citations.]" (People v. Napoles (2002) 104 Cal.App.4th 108, 114.) "'The [unanimity] instruction is designed in part to prevent the jury from amalgamating evidence of multiple offenses, no one of which has been proved beyond a reasonable doubt, in order to conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that a defendant must have done something sufficient to convict on one count.' [Citation.]" (People v. Russo, supra, at p. 1132)

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