People v. Foster, S058025

Defendant's conviction and sentence of death for first degree murder and related offenses

People v. Foster, S058025, concrned a challenge to a conviction of defendant for first degree murder, second degree burglary, and second degree robbery and a sentence of death.

The court affirmed the judgment in its entirety over challenges to: 1) the use of physical restraints on defendant at trial; 2) trial court's vior dire of prospective jurors; 3) admission of evidence of prior crimes; 4) cross-examination of defendant regarding is prior crimes; 5) third-party contacts with jurors; 6) the trial court's refusal to instruct the jury on the court's own motion with respect to trespass as a lesser included offense of burglary; 7) jury instructions concerning prior crimes; 8) sufficiency of the evidence; 9) asserted prosecutorial misconduct; 10) cumulative error; 11) preinstruction of jurors in the penalty phase; 12) instruction concerning victim-impact evidence; and 13) California's death penalty scheme.

Related Link:

• Read the California Supreme Court's Full Decision in People v. Foster, S058025