P. v. Martinez
Filed 8/14/06 P. v. Martinez CA4/2
NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS
California Rules of Court, rule 977(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 977(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 977.
IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA
FOURTH APPELLATE DISTRICT
DIVISION TWO
| THE PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. JOSE CARMEN MARTINEZ, Defendant and Appellant. | E037600 (Super.Ct.No. FVA-015664) OPINION |
APPEAL from the Superior Court of San Bernardino County. Douglas M. Elwell, Judge. Affirmed.
Mark L. Christiansen, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant.
Bill Lockyer, Attorney General, Robert R. Anderson, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Gary W. Schons, Senior Assistant Attorney General, Rhonda Cartwright-Ladendorf, Supervising Attorney General, and Heather R. Crawford, Deputy Attorney General, for Plaintiff and Respondent.
A jury convicted Martinez of the second degree murder of his mother-in-law, during which he used a knife. (Pen. Code, §§ 187, subd. (a) 12022, subd. (b)(1).) Although he was also charged with the murder of his wife, the jury hung on that charge and he eventually pled nolo contendere to voluntary manslaughter, admitting that he had used a knife. He was sentenced to 15 years to life, plus 13 years. He appeals that portion of the judgment involving the murder of his mother-in-law, contending that the jury was misinstructed and evidence was erroneously excluded and admitted. We reject his contentions and affirm.
Facts[1]
Martinez and his wife had been married for 13 years when she told him, over the course of a week, that she wanted to terminate their marriage and had never loved him. At the end of that week, on August 19, 2001, Martinez fatally stabbed his wife and her mother, who lived with them. More facts will be discussed as they pertain to the issues addressed.
Issues and Discussion
1. Jury Instruction on Involuntary Manslaughter
Martinez told his sister that he killed his wife and mother-in-law because he believed his wife was having an affair, they were breaking up and his wife wanted him to move out. He told his brother that he killed both because his wife was going to leave him, adding that he had been living a lie, in that his wife did not love him,[2] and if his wife â€
