P. v. Goins
A jury convicted defendant Pierre Joenell Goins of second degree murder (Pen. Code,[1] § 187), and being a felon in possession of a firearm (§ 12021, subd. (a)(1), repealed by Stats.2010, ch. 711, § 4, now § 29800, subd. (a)(1) ). The jury also found true the allegations that defendant personally and intentionally discharged a firearm, causing great bodily injury and death. (§§ 12022.7, subd. (a); 12022.53, subds. (b), (c) & (d); 12022.5, subd. (a).) The trial court sentenced defendant to 43 years to life in prison. On appeal, defendant contends his conviction must be reversed because the trial court erroneously refused to allow character evidence regarding the victim and deprived him of his constitutional right to retain counsel of his choice. He further claims that reversal is required because his videotaped confessions—wherein he admitted to shooting the victim at close range, multiple times in the back—were not voluntary. We affirm.
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