P. v. Venegas CA2/5
During an audiotaped police interview, defendant and appellant Jose Venegas (defendant) confessed to shooting 19-year-old victim Kenneth Deras (Deras). Defendant, a member of the Metro 13 criminal street gang, told the police he shot Deras, a member of rival gang South Side Montebello, in self-defense. The claim of self-defense was not the defense at trial, however; instead, defendant argued he was not the shooter and falsely confessed to the contrary only under pressure. The jury rejected that defense and found defendant guilty of first degree murder. In this appeal from his conviction, we consider defendant’s challenge to the admission at trial of certain cell-phone-related evidence, as well as defendant’s contentions that the prosecution committed prejudicial Griffin error (i.e., commenting on defendant’s decision not to testify) and improperly displayed a slide not in evidence during closing argument.
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