P. v. Jackson CA1/4
An 81-year-old woman died six months after she was severely beaten and brutally sexually assaulted. Through DNA evidence, defendant Jonathan Jackson was implicated in the crimes. A jury convicted Jackson of first degree felony murder, rape, kidnapping to commit rape, and forcible penetration by a foreign object. The trial court sentenced him to life without the possibility of parole. On appeal, Jackson raises numerous claims of error, including the exclusion of an exculpatory statement made by the victim before she died, insufficient evidence regarding the cause of death, insufficient evidence of separate acts of sexual penetration, prosecutorial misconduct, and imposition of a parole revocation fine. Jackson contends the cumulative effect of these errors denied him a fair trial and due process. Additionally, he challenges the constitutionality of the felony-murder special-circumstances law. With the exception of the parole revocation fine, which the People agree must be stricken, we a
Comments on P. v. Jackson CA1/4