P. v. Racine
In February 2006, defendant Erzsebet Racine asked an acquaintance (informant), to kill her husband. Informant contacted law enforcement, reporting defendants requests on several occasions after he concluded she was serious despite her mood swings and possible mental disorder. Law enforcement wired informant with a recording device. He met with defendant who gave him a photograph of her husband. She asked informant to kill her husband and that she would have the money the following week. Defendant was then arrested. When interviewed by a sheriffs deputy, defendants husband stated that defendant had been taking Lithium for years but stopped when they decided to have children. He reported that she had manic periods every year or two for one or two months at a time. They had recently separated and he believed she was unhappy that he had not repaired her car in a timely manner. Charged with two counts of solicitation of murder (Pen. Code, 653, subd. (b)), defendant first entered a plea of not guilty and not guilty by reason of insanity and was evaluated by a court-appointed psychiatrist. Defendant later withdrew her pleas and entered a plea of no contest to count 2 in exchange for a sentencing lid of six years and dismissal of count 1. The court sentenced defendant to state prison for the midterm of six years. The judgment is affirmed.
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