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People v. Sanchez | 63 Cal. 4th 665, 204 Cal. Rptr. 3d 102, 374 P.3d 320 (2016)
Hearsay is an out of court statement offered to prove the truth of the matter asserted in the statement or the truth of whatever was said. California’s highest court considered whether a gang expert’s testimony derived from various police documents amounted to hearsay in People versus Sanchez.
Marcos Sanchez was charged with various gun, drug, and gang related crimes in California. To prove that Sanchez was associated with the Delhi street gang, the prosecution called police detective David Stow to testify as a gang expert. First, Stow told the jury all about gang culture generally and the Delhi gang. Then the conversation turned to Sanchez. Stow told the jury that when the police issued Sanchez a Street Terrorism Enforcement and Prevention Act notice, or STEP notice, for associating with known gang members, Sanchez admitted to hanging out with guys from the Delhi gang. Stow also told the jury about four other interactions between Sanchez and the police during which Sanchez was with, or admitted association with, known gang members. Based on these five interactions, which Stow learned about entirely through the STEP notice and other police documents, Stow offered the jury his expert opinion that Sanchez was indeed a member of the Delhi gang.
Sanchez objected to the testimony, arguing that Stow repeated out of court statements about Sanchez’s gang association to the jury in violation of the rule against hearsay and the Sixth Amendment’s Confrontation Clause. Meanwhile, the prosecution argued that the statements weren’t hearsay because they were being offered not for their truth but to explain the reasons for Stow’s expert opinion. The trial court agreed with the prosecution. Sanchez was ultimately convicted on all charges, receiving gang related sentencing enhancements. The appellate court reversed the conviction on one charge but otherwise affirmed, and Sanchez appealed to the California Supreme Court.
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