On Monday morning, the Supreme Court will file its opinions in People v. Lopez, People v. Johnson, and People v. Rhoades, which were all argued on the September calendar. (Briefs here; oral argument videos here.) The three filings will leave just one undecided September case.
Lopez raises the issue whether Arizona v. Gant (2009) 556 U.S. 332 permits a peace officer to search the interior of a suspect’s vehicle for identification if the suspect fails to provide it upon request? (See In re Arturo D. (2002) 27 Cal.4th 60.) The court granted review in January 2017.
Johnson is a capital case concerning a murder and a rape committed 40 years ago. In 1987, the Supreme Court reversed the defendant’s convictions and penalty (People v. Johnson (1987) 233 Cal.Rptr. 562), but, after a rare rehearing, affirmed the murder conviction and again reversed the penalty (People v. Johnson (1988) 47 Cal.3d 576). The present automatic direct appeal is from an October 1992 judgment of death, apparently after a retrial. Counsel was appointed in December 1997 and new counsel was appointed in December 2005. Initial briefing was completed in May 2014. The ACLU filed an amicus curiae brief supporting the appellant.
Rhoades is an automatic direct appeal from a September 1999 judgment of death. Counsel was appointed in August 2004 and initial briefing was completed in September 2012.
The opinions can be viewed Monday starting at 10:00 a.m.