P. v. Vargas
Moses Vargas appeals from the judgment entered after a jury convicted him of three counts of second degree murder resulting from a car crash after he evaded pursuing police at high speeds while driving under the influence of phencyclidine (PCP). (Pen. Code, 187, subd. (a), 189; all further undesignated code section references are to the Penal Code). Vargas contends that the trial court erred, and violated his constitutional rights, by refusing to instruct the jury on the version of section 22 that was current at the time of the alleged crime, which would have allowed Vargas to present evidence of voluntary intoxication that prevented him from forming the mental state required for second degree murder. The Attorney General concedes, and we agree, that the trial court erred prejudicially and that Vargas conviction must be reversed on this point. Court decline to consider two other issues the parties have briefed.
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