Defendant has no criminal history, is a productive member of society and supports a family. He was nonetheless found guilty of voluntary manslaughter for the following facts.
What sentence do you think he received -- or, alternatively (or in addition), what sentence do you think would be appropriate?
"In the early hours of November 6, 2020, Sevilla used his employer’s company truck to commute to work from his home in Oakland. In the truck, he carried a loaded .45 caliber semi-automatic handgun that he had purchased illegally. During the drive, he encountered a woman—the victim in this case—in an area he knew was frequented by prostitutes. The victim approached the truck at a traffic light, and she offered to engage in an unspecified sex act for money. Sevilla agreed.
The victim got in the truck and directed Sevilla to drive to a nearby park. The victim texted someone throughout the drive. Once they arrived at the park, she continued to text, and then she asked for $200. According to Sevilla, he took out roughly $500 in cash from his pocket, and the victim pulled out a gun and demanded it all. After Sevilla surrendered his money, the woman got out of his truck, ran across the street, and got inside a car that was parked with the lights off. Surveillance video captured the victim jog across the street and enter the car, but it did not show what took place in the truck, nor did it show that she was carrying cash or a gun.
The two vehicles sat still for about two minutes until Sevilla decided to confront the occupants of the other car. He retrieved his handgun from under the passenger seat as he made a three-point turn, pulled up next to the car, and turned on his headlights. The driver of the car, Samuels, rolled down his window, and Sevilla partly lowered his window. Samuels then produced a large handgun.
Sevilla testified that, after a brief verbal exchange, Samuels fired at him. Sevilla said he felt two bullets go past his head and the truck window’s glass rain down on him. Sevilla further testified that, in response to being shot at, he “grabbed the firearm,” “racked the slide,” and “shot off two shots” “[t]owards the driver[,] [t]owards the car,” even though he “knew” both Samuels and the victim were only three to four feet away in the car.
The surveillance video captured the gunfight but did not resolve who fired first. Nor did the surveillance video capture what happened inside the two vehicles. The physical evidence showed that, in total, counting both of them, Sevilla and Samuels fired five to six shots from two different guns.
Without checking to see if anyone had been hurt, Sevilla sped off and drove to work. He had, however, shot the victim in the head. Samuels drove her to the hospital where she later died."
In short, during a robbery, the robber and the victim get into a shootout and one of the robbers dies. The victim could have let the robber go, but doesn't. Both the robber and the victim shot at each other. What sentence for the victim of the robbery/perpetrator of the voluntary manslaughter?
Answer (at least in the present case) . . . .
