People v. Schoppe-Rico
Filed 6/29/06
CERTIFIED FOR PARTIAL PUBLICATION*
IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA
FIRST APPELLATE DISTRICT
DIVISION FOUR
| THE PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. JOHN MOSES SCHOPPE-RICO, Defendant and Appellant. | A104363 (Contra Costa County Super. Ct. No. 05011510-5) |
Story continue from Part I ……..
For the foregoing reasons, we conclude that the street gang firearm statutes do not include a gang connection element. This disposes not only of appellant's argument that his motion for acquittal should have been granted because the gang connection was not proven, but also of his argument that his convictions under the street gang firearm statutes must be reversed because the jury was not instructed that it had to find a gang connection in order to convict him of the firearm offenses. We therefore reject appellant's challenge to his convictions under the street gang firearm statutes.
Appellant also relies on his gang connection element claim as the basis for an additional contention. He argues that because the street gang firearm charges should have been dismissed, the trial court erred in admitting evidence of appellant's gang membership and activities. Averring that this evidence was highly prejudicial to appellant's defense case on the murder charge, appellant contends his murder conviction should be reversed. Because we have rejected the premise of this argument, we also reject its conclusion.
A. Sufficiency of Evidence of First Degree Murder
In addition to his other arguments challenging his murder conviction, appellant contends that the evidence of premeditation and deliberation is insufficient to support his conviction for first degree murder. In assessing appellant's challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence, we are required to â€
