Wednesday, December 20, 2006

People v. Dutra (Cal. Ct. App. - Dec. 20, 2006)

Sometimes you read an opinion and say: "Wow. I wish I could write nearly half as well as this." Which was my reaction to this opinion by Justice Morrison.

It's not that Justice Morrison said anything that was substantively entralling or doctrinally complex. It's just that he said it so well.

Excellent job, Fred. I'm impressed. And envious.

P.S. - I also thought that it was pretty subtle for Justice Morrison to say that the defendant, a young college student, was an accessory in the murder because she "fell under the spell" of the killer, who was the victim's wife). Rather than saying, as further reading suggests, that the defendant, Sarah Dutra, might well have been having a lesbian affair with her. I liked that. No reason to sensationalize things.

At least in the pages of the California Reporter. Blogs, of course, are different.

You can read more about the story in this medium-profile murder case if you'd like.