P. v. Leighton

Filed 6/27/06 P. v. Leighton CA2/7

NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS

California Rules of Court, rule 977(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 977(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 977.

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

SECOND APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION SEVEN

APPEALS from judgments of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County. Larry P. Fidler, Judge. Affirmed as modified.

Mark D. Greenberg, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant Randall B. Williams.

Landra E. Rosenthal, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant Kenneth C. Leighton.

Bill Lockyer, Attorney General, Robert R. Anderson, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Pamela C. Hamanaka, Senior Assistant Attorney General, Margaret E. Maxwell and John R. Gorey, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent.

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Kenneth Leighton and Randall Williams appeal from the judgments following their convictions for the first degree murders of Jamie Navaroli and April Mahoney. We affirm the judgments with minor modifications to the sentences.

FACTS AND PROCEEDINGS BELOW

Navaroli and Mahoney were gunned down in the driveway of a friend's home. The prosecution theorized Williams killed them at Leighton's behest to prevent them from testifying against Leighton in a pending burglary case. Leighton and Williams were tried separately with Leighton being tried first.[1] We summarize the evidence in the light most favorable to the judgments.[2] Essentially the same evidence was introduced at both trials.[3]

A. Evidence of The Uncharged Burglaries

Leighton owned an automobile repair shop in the San Fernando Valley. Before opening his own shop Leighton performed muffler installations and repairs at a shop owned by Reinhold Gamper. After Leighton moved out of Gamper's shop Gamper and his employees discovered some of their tools were missing. A few months later Gamper arrived at work to find the padlock on the door cut off and tools and equipment stolen. The stolen items included an arc welder which could be used for muffler work. Gamper went to Leighton's home and recovered the arc welder from the bed of Leighton's truck. Later he found some of the missing tools and equipment at Leighton's shop.

In the same month as the Gamper burglary another burglary occurred at a warehouse in the Valley where several businesses stored automotive tools, equipment and parts. The stolen items included air compressors, an electric generator and sets of new shock absorbers. Executing a search warrant, the police found the shock absorbers at Leighton's shop. The tire treads on Leighton's truck matched the tread marks found on the floor of the warehouse.

At the time these burglaries occurred Navaroli worked at Leighton's shop. In return Leighton allowed Navaroli and Mahoney to live there. Navaroli and Mahoney were present at the shop when the police conducted the search which turned up the stolen shock absorbers. Both were taken to the local police station and interviewed. Navaroli wrote and signed a statement claiming Williams had come to Leighton's shop in a truck loaded with shock absorbers, air compressors and a generator. Leighton, Navaroli and a third man unloaded the shocks and stored them in the back of the shop. Two other men took the compressors away. Navaroli identified these men to the police and told the police where the compressors could be found. Mahoney signed a statement in which she claimed she heard Leighton brag about breaking into a warehouse and stealing a generator, compressors and boxes of shocks. She stated she saw those items at Leighton's shop. Leighton was arrested for the Gamper's and warehouse burglaries.

B. Evidence Of The Murders

After Navaroli and Mahoney gave their statements to the police they returned to Leighton's shop, packed up their belongings and moved to a motel. They did not tell anyone where they were staying.

When Leighton discovered Navaroli and Mahoney were gone he called one of their friends and told her to tell Navaroli â€