People v. Perez

Summary

The California Supreme Court held that a defendant who indiscriminately fired a single shot at a group of people, intending to kill someone but not targeting particular individuals or intending to kill everyone, could be convicted of only one count of premeditated attempted murder. The court distinguished cases involving a kill-zone theory or victims positioned directly in the line of fire, while affirming the separate assault convictions. The judgment was reversed and remanded to conform the judgment to a single attempted-murder conviction.

Holdings

1. Attempted murder requires specific intent to kill, and guilt must be evaluated separately as to each alleged victim. A defendant cannot be convicted of attempted murder of each person in a group merely because a single shot endangered all of them.
2. When a defendant indiscriminately fires a single shot at a group with the specific intent to kill someone, but without targeting a particular individual or using a means calculated to kill everyone, the evidence supports one count of attempted murder, not a count for every person in the group.
3. A single bullet fired from a moving car at a group from 60 feet away, without more, did not establish a kill zone supporting multiple attempted-murder convictions.

Questions Presented

1. Whether substantial evidence supported eight separate convictions for premeditated attempted murder when the defendant indiscriminately fired a single shot at a group, intended to kill someone but did not target a particular person, and did not use force calculated to kill everyone in the group.
2. Whether the single-shot facts established a kill zone sufficient to support multiple attempted-murder convictions.
3. Whether the judgment should be modified to reflect only one conviction for premeditated attempted murder of a peace officer.

Disposition

reversed_and_remanded