P. v. Chia
In 1988, Frank Kow, Michael Sun, and William Wang actively participated in a planned robbery and the shooting of three undercover DEA agents who were posing as drug buyers. Two of the agents were killed, the third was wounded, and Kow and Sun were killed by other agents as they attempted to flee. Wang was wounded but survived and was later convicted of two counts of first degree murder, one count of attempted murder, and one count of robbery, and was sentenced to state prison for life without the possibility of parole. Court affirmed (People v. Wang (June 3, 1992, B049641) [nonpub. opn.]), and the Supreme Court denied review (People v. Wang (Aug. 27, 1992, S027668).
At his retrial in 2005, Chia called Wang as defense witness, and Wang testified that Chia had not been involved in the robbery or murders of the DEA agents. The jury rejected Wang's testimony (and the rest of Chia's defense) and once again convicted him of two counts of first degree murder, one count of attempted murder, one count of robbery, and one count of conspiracy to commit robbery, with true findings on allegations that a principal had been armed with a firearm during the commission of the murders and the robbery. Chia was sentenced to state prison for an aggregate term of 61 years to life. He appeals, challenging various aspects of the trial and his sentence. Court vacate a $200 fine but otherwise affirm the judgment.
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