People v. Hansen

9 Cal.4th 300 (1994)

Purchase the Printed Copy at bsmsphd.com

Nature of the Case

To access this section all you need to do is click here and register.

Facts

Hansen (D) with others, Andrade and Maycott, planned to purchase $40 of methamphetamine and D accompanied by his girlfriend, Kimberly Geldon, and Maycott drove to an apartment duplex located in the City of San Diego. D pounded on the door of the upstairs apartment looking for Christina Almenar and when realizing she was not there; he was met by a Michael Echaves who informed D that he could get him some meth. D gave Echaves two twenty dollar bills and went with him to another complex. Echaves said he would be back shortly. Echaves failed to return, and D and his companions went back to the first apartment duplex and were unsuccessful in locating Echaves. They returned later with a gun and fired repeatedly into the dwelling. Diane Rosalez, a thirteen-year-old girl, was killed by the shots. D was apprehended and confessed after waiving his Miranda rights. The trial court instructed the jury on several theories of murder including second-degree felony murder; a killing that occurs during the commission or attempted commission of a felony inherently dangerous to human life and that the felony of shooting at an inhabited dwelling is inherently dangerous to human life. D was found guilty of second-degree murder and appealed; the trial court erred because the offense of discharging a firearm merged with the resulting homicide. The Court of Appeals found that the underlying felony did not merge with the homicide.