Facts
- At a carnival parking lot in Lemoore, California, a group of Norteno-associated youths confronted and taunted a Sureno-associated youth and his companion, prompting them to leave.
- The Sureno-associated youth and his companion went home, reported the confrontation to others, and returned to the carnival in a pickup truck with Nicholas Scott Stone in the passenger seat.
- Police had directed the Norteno group to leave; about 10 gathered on a grassy area in the parking lot.
- The truck drove past the group twice; on a third pass, it stopped about 10–15 feet away, the driver displayed a gang sign, and Stone lowered his window and fired a handgun toward the group.
- An officer observed an arm extend from the passenger window, saw a muzzle flash, and described the arm as pointing straight out toward the group.
- A 16-year-old Norteno associate (Joel F.) saw Stone extend the gun toward the group, slightly angled upward; Joel did not think Stone aimed at any particular person. No one was struck.
- Stone was charged with attempted murder of Joel F.; a jury convicted Stone and found firearm and gang enhancements true.
- The Court of Appeal reversed, finding instructional error on attempted-murder intent and insufficient evidence of the required intent; the California Supreme Court granted review.
Issues
- Whether a defendant who fires into a group intending to kill someone in the group, without selecting or caring which person, may be convicted of attempted murder of a named individual.
- Whether the specific-intent element of attempted murder requires intent to kill a particular identified victim, rather than intent to kill a human being.
- Whether such generalized intent, if proved, supports more than one attempted-murder count.
Decision
- The California Supreme Court reversed the Court of Appeal and reinstated the attempted-murder conviction.
- The court held that attempted murder requires a specific intent to kill a human being, not necessarily a particular human being.
- The court found the evidence sufficient for a rational jury to infer Stone intended to kill someone in the group when he fired at close range during a retaliatory gang confrontation.
- The court stated that, absent proof of intent to kill more than one person, this theory supports a single attempted-murder conviction.
Legal Principles
- Attempted murder requires (1) a direct but ineffectual act toward killing and (2) a specific intent to kill.
- The specific intent for attempted murder is satisfied by an intent to kill a human being; the prosecution need not prove intent to kill a particular, identified victim.
- Shooting into a group can show a “generalized” specific intent to kill someone in that group, which is distinct from mere reckless or dangerous conduct without an intent to kill.
- Where the evidence shows intent to kill someone, but not multiple persons, liability ordinarily supports only one count of attempted murder.
Conclusion
A defendant who fires into a group with the specific intent to kill a person in the group may be convicted of attempted murder even if the defendant did not target a particular individual, and such generalized intent ordinarily supports only a single attempted-murder count unless an intent to kill more than one person is proven.