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People v. Whitt10/25/1990
hat once, after a "bad trip" on LSD, defendant acted strangely by bathing compulsively, shaving his head, and claiming to see spiders on the wall. His parents sent him to a therapist for several weeks. On another occasion, defendant was found by police standing on a brick in the middle of the street "trying to keep his head above water." His parents admitted him to a state mental hospital for "drug-related" treatment. He was released a few days later, and given antipsychotic medication for several months.
Edgar testified that defendant was arrested several times on various drug and theft charges. Defendant's relationship with his mother became "strained" because she could not tolerate his drug and alcohol use. According to Edgar, defendant never acted violently towards his parents.
Defendant's wife Sherry testified that in 1980 she and defendant rented a house near Yucaipa from defendant's parents. They lived there with Sherry's daughter from a prior relationship. Sherry and defendant's father both testified that defendant displayed affection for the daughter, treating her as though she were his own child.
Sherry testified that defendant's mood began to change in January 1980, after he lost his job installing mobilehomes. He became "depressed," stopped looking for work, and started drinking beer and peppermint schnapps and smoking marijuana. Sherry explained that in the six-month period before the crimes, defendant "often" consumed these substances "at the same time" and became "drunk." During such episodes, defendant passed out, or yelled at the television set and accused her and the neighbors of conspiring against him. Defendant also complained to Sherry of having a "haunted ear" -- "people living inside of his ear." Sherry insisted that defendant never became physically abusive towards her or her daughter.
Sherry recalled that one week before the crimes, she told defendant -- as she had several times before -- that she would leave him if he did not stop drinking. Three days later, the parents visited defendant and Sherry to discuss delinquent rental payments on the house. Edgar testified that defendant sat watching and talking to the television set most of the time they were there. Suddenly, defendant sprang to his feet, angrily accused his parents of disrupting his life, and ordered them to leave. Defendant's
mother then handed Sherry an eviction notice and the parents left. Edgar testified he had never seen defendant act this way before.
The day before the robbery-murder, Sherry and defendant argued over his drinking. Sherry gave conflicting testimony as to whether defendant in fact consumed any alcohol that day. However, she was certain that defendant was "sober" when they awoke the next morning -- the day of the crimes. Defendant left the house for two hours that morning, and returned at noon with a can of beer in his hand. Sherry said he was "drunk" and "staggering." He left a second time and returned about 2:30 p.m. in the same physical condition.
Longtime acquaintances, Charles and Natalie Friend, testified that defendant visited them the same afternoon. The two men consumed a total of twelve to twenty-four cans of beer over a two-hour period. Both Charles and Natalie believed that defendant was under the influence of alcohol by the time he left the house about 5 p.m. Charles testified that defendant was friendly and "talkative" -- a mood he typically displayed when drinking beer. Natalie thought defendant may have been a "little" upset over the recent confrontation with his parents. In general, she described him as a nonthreatening person.
Near the time of the special circumstance retrial, Dr. Demos
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