People v. Perez

2 Cal.4th 1117 (1992)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

Perez (D) killed Victoria Mesa. There were 38 knife wounds. The only connection between D and Victoria was that they attended the same high school 10 years earlier and D had played sports with her husband, Michael. D lived 2.25 miles away and would drive by the house about twice a week and wave to Michael. The forensic evidence was overwhelming against D. The prosecution argued that whoever killed Victoria killed her in rage. D did not testify and made no statements regarding his motives. D was convicted of first-degree murder. The Court of Appeals reduced that conviction to second-degree murder. The People appealed.