People v. Hood, 462 P.2d 370 (Cal. 1969). · Go Syfert
People v. Hood, 462 P.2d 370 (Cal. 1969). Cases Citing This Book View Copy Cite
1,540 citation events (342 in the last 25 years) across 34 distinct courts.
Strongest positive: State v. Campos (nm, 1996-05-30)
Treatment trajectory · 1969 → 2026 · click a year to view as-of
1969 1997 2026
Top citers, strongest first. 50 distinct citers.
examined Cited as authority (verbatim quote) State v. Campos (6×) also: Cited as authority (quoted)
N.M. · 1996 · signal: see also · quote attribution · 6 verbatim quotes · confidence high
when the definition refers to defendant's intent to do some further act or achieve additional consequence, the crime is deemed to be one of specific intent.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Dimmick CA1/5
Cal. Ct. App. · 2025 · confidence medium
(People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 457 [specific intent crime “refers to defendant’s intent to do some further act or achieve some additional consequence”].) Under these circumstances, we conclude there is no reasonable probability the result at trial would have been different had defense counsel received the toxicology report in a timely manner.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Canales
Cal. Ct. App. · 2024 · confidence medium
Half a century ago, Chief Justice Traynor famously wrote that “[s]pecific and general intent have been notoriously difficult terms to define and apply, and a number of textwriters recommend that they be abandoned altogether.” (People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 456 (Hood).) Chief Justice Traynor observed assault, for instance, is appropriately characterized as a specific intent crime, but equally well characterized as a general intent crime.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Canales
Cal. Ct. App. · 2024 · confidence medium
Half a century ago, Chief Justice Roger Traynor famously wrote that “[s]pecific and general intent have been notoriously difficult terms to define and apply, and a number of textwriters recommend that they be abandoned altogether.” (People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 456 (Hood).) Chief Justice Traynor observed assault, for instance, is appropriately characterized as a specific intent crime, but equally well characterized as a general intent crime.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Murray CA5
Cal. Ct. App. · 2023 · confidence medium
(People v. McDaniel (1994) 22 Cal.App.4th 278, 284 [§ 136.1 requires showing the defendant had the specific intent to achieve some further or additional consequence]; People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 457 [“When the definition refers to defendant’s intent to do some further act or achieve some additional consequence, the crime is deemed to be one of specific intent”].) Defendant’s threats alone are insufficient to prove defendant’s guilt under section 136.1, subdivision (b)(3) on the facts of this case.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Suazo
Cal. Ct. App. · 2023 · confidence medium
(People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 456 (Hood).) The high court observed that “[s]pecific and general intent have been notoriously difficult terms to define and apply.” (Ibid.) Nonetheless, the high court explained: “When the definition of a crime consists of only the description of a particular act, without reference to intent to do a further act or achieve a future consequence, we ask whether the defendant intended to do the proscribed act.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Williams v. Harris
N.D. Cal. · 2020 · confidence medium
(Cf. People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 458 [a drunken person may be unable to form any intent beyond “an intent 14 to do something simple, such as strike another,” but is “more likely to act rashly and impulsively”].) If Williams was not too intoxicated 15 to formulate and pursue specific criminal objectives, then it is unlikely that he was too intoxicated to know the grave risk of death 16 associated with his behavior, a matter of mere comprehension rather than purpose. 17 Moreover, a trial court must give a requested instruction only if it is 18 supported by substantial evidence, t…
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Seo
Cal. Ct. App. · 2020 · confidence medium
(See People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 457 [in 1872 “‘specific’ and ‘general’ intent were not yet terms of art”].) Based on since-established principles, it is clear that the offense of possession of counterfeiting equipment is a general intent crime that requires the specific mental state of knowledge, as discussed ante.
examined Cited as authority (rule) People v. Fontenot (6×) also: Cited "see", Cited "see, e.g."
Cal. · 2019 · confidence medium
(See People v. Williams (2001) 26 Cal.4th 779 , 786, 111 Cal.Rptr.2d 114 , 29 P.3d 197 [distinguishing " 'an intent to commit [an] act' " from "a specific intent to obtain some further objective" and concluding the former falls short of describing "the traditional formulation of criminal attempt later codified in section 21a, which requires a specific intent"].) And as we held in Hood , that distinction "is sufficient to justify drawing a line between" those two types of crimes for, among other things, "considering evidence of intoxication in the one case and disregarding it in the other." ( H…
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Antoine E. McCloud v. State of Florida
unknown court · 2018 · confidence medium
L. 521 , 525 (2016) (“[A] crime will qualify as a specific-intent offense if it requires the state to prove that the defendant intended to ‘achieve some additional consequence’ beyond the commission of ‘the proscribed act.’ ” (quoting People v. Hood, 462 P.2d 370, 378 (Cal. 1969))); 21 Am.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Thiel
Cal. Ct. App. · 2016 · confidence medium
(People v. Alvarez (1996) 14 Cal.4th 155, 219-220 [ 58 Cal.Rptr.2d 385 , 926 P.2d 365 ].) “ ‘Specific and general intent have been notoriously difficult terms to define and apply . . . .’ (People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 456 [82 Cal.Rptr. *1209 618, 462 P.2d 370 ].) However, some principles are settled: ‘When the definition of a crime consists of only the description of a particular act, without reference to intent to do a further act or achieve a future consequence, we ask whether the defendant intended to do the proscribed act.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Fierro CA5
Cal. Ct. App. · 2016 · confidence medium
(See People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 456-457 [defining “general” and “specific” intent].) The parties agree, as do we, that the trial court failed to instruct the jury regarding the elements necessary to find true the enhancement allegation pursuant to section 12022.55.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Lucero
Cal. Ct. App. · 2016 · confidence medium
When the definition refers to defendant’s intent to do some further act or achieve some additional consequence, the crime is deemed to be one of specific intent.” (People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 456-457 [ 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370 ] (Hood).) In addition, “when the Legislature intends to require proof of a specific intent in connection with a sentence enhancement provision, it has done so explicitly by referring to the required intent in the statute.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. ZarateCastillo
Cal. Ct. App. · 2016 · confidence medium
When the definition refers to defendant’s intent to do some further act or achieve some additional consequence, the crime is deemed to be one of specific intent.” (People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 456-457 [ 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370 ].) Thus, “specific intent” is not, as the Dillon court suggested, limited to “the specific intent to commit th[e] crime” (Dillon, at p. 1380); rather, it also encompasses the intent “to do some further act or achieve some additional consequence” (Hood, at p. 457, italics added).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Springer CA4/2
Cal. Ct. App. · 2015 · confidence medium
(People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 457-458 [jury may not consider voluntary intoxication where the crime charged requires only general intent]; People v. Simpson (1987) 192 Cal.App.3d 1360, 1369 [“Where the defense theory is nonparticipation, the question of whether voluntary intoxication prevented formation of specific intent is irrelevant.”]; People v. Watts (1976) 59 Cal.App.3d 80, 84-85 .) 17 3.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Mason v. Superior Court
Cal. Ct. App. · 2015 · confidence medium
The statutory authority for admission of the evidence is found in section 29.4 (former § 22). ( Hood, supra, 1 Cal.3d at p. 457.) Atkins says: “Thus, there must be a general intent to willfully commit the act of setting on fire under such circumstances that the direct, natural, and highly probable consequences would be the burning of the relevant structure or property.” ( Atkins, supra, 25 Cal.4th at p. 89.) A further “intent to violate law, or to injure another, or to acquire any advantage” is ruled out by the definition of “ ‘willfully’ ” (§ 7, subd. 1) unless “otherwise …
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Ortega
Cal. Ct. App. · 2015 · confidence medium
(Birks, at pp. 119-120.) In concluding that a defendant does not have the right to an instruction on lesser related offenses, the Birks court noted *970 mutual fairness concerns underpinning a trial court’s sua sponte duty to instruct a criminal jury on a necessarily included lesser offense, a duty recognized in the first instance by the California Supreme Court in People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 450 [ 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370 ].
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Lucero CA5
Cal. Ct. App. · 2015 · confidence medium
(Chance, supra, 44 Cal.4th at p. 1167 ; People v. Williams (2001) 26 Cal.4th 779, 782 (Williams); People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 452-458 (Hood).) Section 29.4 makes evidence of voluntary intoxication inadmissible for the purpose of negating the required mental state for a general intent crime, including the element of knowledge. (§ 29.4, subd. (a).) “Evidence of voluntary intoxication is admissible solely on the issue of whether or not the defendant actually formed a required specific intent, or, when charged with murder, whether the defendant premeditated, deliberated, or harbored exp…
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Onsri CA3
Cal. Ct. App. · 2014 · confidence medium
(People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 456-457 [in general, a crime is a general intent crime when the definition of the crime consists of a description of a particular act, without reference to intent to do a further act or achieve a future consequence and the issue is whether the defendant intended to do the proscribed act]; People v. Thurston (1999) 71 Cal.App.4th 1050, 1053 [regarding statute penalizing willful infliction of corporal injury, use of the word “willfully” without any additional specific intent language denotes a general intent crime]; People v. Johnson (1998) 67 Cal.App.4th…
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Onsri CA3
Cal. Ct. App. · 2014 · confidence medium
(People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 456-457 [in general, a crime is a general intent crime when the definition of the crime consists of a description of a particular act, without reference to intent to do a further act or achieve a future consequence and the issue is whether the defendant intended to do the proscribed act]; People v. Thurston (1999) 71 Cal.App.4th 1050, 1053 [regarding statute penalizing willful infliction of corporal injury, use of the word “willfully” without any additional specific intent language denotes a general intent crime]; People v. Johnson (1998) 67 Cal.App.4th…
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Ruben Ceron v. Eric H. Holder Jr.
9th Cir. · 2014 · confidence medium
One clear example is that, as late as 1968, the California Court of Appeal had held — erroneously under the Williams formulation— that “it is now settled that assault is a specific intent crime.” People v. Fanning, 265 Cal.App.2d 729 , 71 Cal.Rptr. 641, 644 (1968); cf. Williams, 111 Cal.Rptr.2d 114 , 29 P.3d at 203 (“Assault is still a general intent crime.... ” (citations omitted)); see also Williams, 111 Cal.Rptr.2d 114 , 29 P.3d at 200-03 (discussing confusion in the cases); People v. Hood, 1 Cal.3d 444 , 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370, 374-78 (1969) (discussing the confusion i…
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Blanchard CA6
Cal. Ct. App. · 2014 · confidence medium
(See People v. 9 Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 449-450 [overruling earlier cases to the extent they held that it is not error for a trial court to fail to instruct on lesser included offenses on its own motion, even though such an instruction would be supported by the evidence].) Now, it is well-settled that “ ‘[t]he obligation to instruct on lesser included offenses exists even when as a matter of trial tactics a defendant not only fails to request the instruction but expressly objects to its being given. [Citations.] Just as the People have no legitimate interest in obtaining a conviction of…
discussed Cited as authority (rule) P. v. Lucas CA4/3
Cal. Ct. App. · 2013 · confidence medium
The 6 intent that the threat be taken as a threat. [¶] If the People have not met this burden, you must find the defendant not guilty of attempt[ed] criminal threat[s].” Those instructions are all correct in law. (§ 29.4; People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 458-459 [the defendant’s voluntary intoxication may not be considered in determining whether the defendant committed assault, which is a general intent crime].) Because defendant did not object to any of those jury instructions in the trial court, he has forfeited the right to challenge them on appeal.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) P. v. White CA3
Cal. Ct. App. · 2013 · confidence medium
Noting that the distinction between general and specific intent can be confusing (see People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 456 [“Specific and general intent have been notoriously difficult terms to define and apply”]), defendant asserts that the trial court‟s response “merely begs the jury‟s question” as to whether defendant specifically intended to fire the shotgun as opposed to doing so by accident or negligence.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Stark v. Superior Court (2×)
Cal. · 2011 · confidence medium
When the definition refers to defendant’s intent to do some further act or achieve some additional consequence, the crime is deemed to be one of specific intent.” (People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 456-457 [ 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370 ].) In reaching its general intent conclusion, the Dillon court relied on section 20, which provides: “In every crime or public offense there must exist a union, or joint operation of act and intent, or criminal negligence.” The Dillon court stated: “The only construction that may be placed upon [section 20] is that there must be an intent to do …
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Cross v. Cooper
Cal. Ct. App. · 2011 · confidence medium
When the definition refers to defendant’s intent to do some further act or achieve some additional consequence, the crime is deemed to be one of specific intent.” (People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 456-457 [ 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370 ], italics added; accord, People v. Rubalcava (2000) 23 Cal.4th 322, 328 [ 96 Cal.Rptr.2d 735 , 1 P.3d 52 ].) Given our conclusion and disposition, we need not address the myriad additional issues, claims, and arguments raised by both parties in their briefs.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Cesar V.
Cal. Ct. App. · 2011 · confidence medium
When the definition refers to defendant’s intent to do some further act or achieve some additional consequence, the crime is deemed to be one of specific intent.” (People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 456-157 [ 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370 ].) Here, the definition of the crime is simply a description of the prohibited act, and there is no reference to an intent to do a further act or achieve a future consequence.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Rasmussen
Cal. Ct. App. · 2010 · confidence medium
When the definition refers to defendant’s intent to do some further act or achieve some additional consequence, the crime is deemed to be one of specific intent.” (People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 456-457 [ 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370 ] (Hood).) The resistance prong of section 69 involves a defendant who “knowingly” resists an executive officer. (§ 69.) “The word ‘knowingly’ imports only a knowledge that the facts exist which bring the act or omission within the provisions of this code.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) United States v. Grajeda
9th Cir. · 2009 · confidence medium
Emphasizing that the unlawful consequences of an assault need not be specifically intended, the Colantuono court concluded that “the necessary mental state is ‘an intent merely to do a violent act.’ ” Id. (quoting People v. Hood, 1 Cal.3d 444 , 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370, 378 (1969)).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) United States v. Grajeda
9th Cir. · 2009 · confidence medium
Emphasizing that the unlawful consequences of an assault need not be specifi- cally intended, the Colantuono court concluded that “the nec- essary mental state is ‘an intent merely to do a violent act.’ ” Id. (quoting People v. Hood, 462 P.2d 370, 378 (Cal. 1969)).
examined Cited as authority (rule) People v. Chance (5×)
Cal. · 2008 · confidence medium
(See Hinkley, Assault-related Conduct Under the Proposed California Criminal Code (1974) 25 Hastings L.J. 657 ; Williams, supra, 26 Cal.4th at p. 789 .) Although the language quoted above might be deemed consistent with a specific intent requirement, we have consistently referred to McMakin as authority for the proposition that general intent is sufficient for assault. ( Colantuono, supra, 1 Cal.4th at pp. 213, fn. 3, 217, 219; People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 452, fn. 4 [ 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370 ].) The dissent suggests there was a time when a specific intent to injure was required…
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Williams
Cal. Ct. App. · 2008 · confidence medium
(See, e.g., People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 456 [ 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370 ].) As the guide for using the CALCRIM instructions explains: “The instructions do not use the terms general and specific intent because while these terms are very familiar to judges and lawyers, they are novel and often confusing to many jurors.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Timms
Cal. Ct. App. · 2007 · confidence medium
(People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 455-458 [ 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370 ] [assault is general intent crime that is not susceptible to negation through showing of voluntary intoxication].) The 1981 amendment to section 22 was part of a legislative mission that abolished the defense of diminished capacity while preserving in subdivision (b) the relevancy of evidence of voluntary intoxication to show whether the defendant actually had the required mental state for the crime charged.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Franklyn Nunez, s/k/a Franklyn A. Nunez v. Commonwealth
Va. Ct. App. · 2007 · confidence medium
“It is elementary that where . . . the statute makes an offense consist of an act combined with a particular intent, proof of such intent is as necessary as proof of the act itself and must be established as a matter of fact.” Ridley v. Commonwealth, 219 Va. 834, 836 , 252 S.E.2d 313, 314 (1979); see also Patterson v. Commonwealth, 215 Va. 698, 699 , 213 S.E.2d 752, 753 (1975); People v. Hood, 462 P.2d 370, 375-76 (Cal. 1969) (explaining that where crime consists of an act without reference to intent to do further act or achieve future consequence, the court asks only if defendant intended…
discussed Cited as authority (rule) In Re Martin Alonzo L.
Cal. Ct. App. · 2006 · confidence medium
It held that the statute defined a general intent crime because it “describes a single criminal act — carrying a concealed dirk or dagger on the person — and makes no reference to any other act or consequence.” (Rubalcava, at p. 328.) Similarly, the definition of metal knuckles focuses on their physical characteristics without reference to the possessor’s “intent to do a further act or achieve a future consequence.” (Ibid., quoting People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 457 [ 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370 ].) “Accordingly, defendant’s intended use is not an element of the crim…
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Chow v. State (2×)
Md. · 2006 · confidence medium
People v. Hood, 1 Cal.3d 444 , 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370, 378 (1969).” Harris, 353 Md. at 603-04 , 728 A.2d at 183-84 .
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. NOORI
Cal. Ct. App. · 2006 · confidence medium
When the definition refers to defendant’s intent to do some further act or achieve some additional consequence, the crime is deemed to be one of specific intent.” [Citation.]’ (Quoting People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 456-157 [ 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370 ].)” (People v. Ramsey (2000) 79 Cal.App.4th 621, 632 [ 94 Cal.Rptr.2d 301 ].) Under section 1823, persons who lack the required license act with general criminal intent if they intentionally either represent themselves as being authorized to receive—or solicit or receive—money for transmission to a foreign country.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Keovilayphone
Cal. Ct. App. · 2005 · confidence medium
When the definition refers to defendant’s intent to do some further act or achieve some additional consequence, the crime is deemed to be one of specific intent.’ (People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 456-457 [ 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370 ].) General criminal intent thus requires no further mental state beyond willing commission of the act proscribed by law.” (People v. Sargent (1999) 19 Cal.4th 1206, 1215 [ 81 Cal.Rptr.2d 835 , 970 P.2d 409 ].) In order to be found guilty of the crime of rape in concert, a defendant must “voluntarily acting in concert with another person,” commit…
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Overman
Cal. Ct. App. · 2005 · confidence medium
When the definition refers to defendant’s intent to do some future act or achieve some additional consequence, the crime is deemed to be one of specific intent.’ ” (People v. Davis (1995) 10 Cal.4th 463, 518-519, fn. 15 [ 41 Cal.Rptr.2d 826 , 896 P.2d 119 ], citing People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 456-457 [ 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370 ].) Section 246 does not require a specific intent “ ‘to do a further act or achieve a future consequence’ ” beyond the proscribed act of shooting “at” an occupied building or other proscribed target.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Alvarado (2×)
Cal. Ct. App. · 2005 · confidence medium
“Specific and general intent have been notoriously difficult terms to define and apply . . . .” (People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 456 [ 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370 ].) However, some principles are settled: “When the definition of a crime consists of only the description of a particular act, without reference to intent to do a further act or achieve a future consequence, we ask whether the defendant intended to do the proscribed act.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Linwood
Cal. Ct. App. · 2003 · confidence medium
In People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 456-457 [ 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370 ], the Supreme Court explained the difference between the two: “When a definition of a crime consists of only the description of a particular act, without reference to intent to do a further act or achieve a future consequence, we ask whether the defendant intended to do the proscribed act.
examined Cited as authority (rule) People v. Wright (3×)
Cal. Ct. App. · 2002 · confidence medium
(People v. Rocha (1971) 3 Cal.3d 893, 899 [ 92 Cal.Rptr. 172 , 479 P.2d 372 ]; People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 458 [ 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370 ].) The harm addressed is a battery.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Gaitan
Cal. Ct. App. · 2001 · confidence medium
When the definition refers to defendant’s intent to do some further act or achieve some additional consequence, the crime is deemed to be one of specific intent.’ ” (Rubalcava, supra, 23 Cal.4th at p. 328 , quoting People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 456-457 [ 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370 ], italics added.) Subdivision (a) of section 12020 describes a single criminal act—carrying metal knuckles—and makes no reference to any other act or consequence.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Cook
Cal. Ct. App. · 2001 · confidence medium
(People v. Birks (1998) 19 Cal.4th 108, 118 [ 77 Cal.Rptr.2d 848 , 960 P.2d 1073 ].) This requirement is based upon the rule that “the court must instruct sua sponte on ‘the “general principles of law governing the case;” ’ i.e., those ‘ “closely and openly connected with the facts of the case before the court.” ’ [Citations.]” (People v. Birks, supra, 19 Cal.4th at p. 118 , quoting People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 449 [ 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370 ]; see also People v. Wilson (1967) 66 Cal.2d 749, 759 [ 59 Cal.Rptr. 156 , 427 P.2d 820 ]; People v. Putnam (1942) 20 C…
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Williams
Cal. · 2001 · confidence medium
We first recognized this struggle in People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 452-459 [ 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370 ] (Hood), where we held that a jury may not consider voluntary intoxication when determining whether a defendant committed assault.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Hall
Cal. Ct. App. · 2000 · confidence medium
(See People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 454, 456-457 , 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370 ; People v. Norton (1978) 146 Cal.Rptr. 343 , 80 Cal.App.3d Supp. 14, 26 .) "When the evidence shows the weapon was exhibited in a rude, angry or threatening manner, the offense is complete." ( People v. Mercer (1980) 113 Cal.App.3d 803, 806 , 169 Cal.Rptr. 897 ; People v. McKinzie (1986) 179 Cal.App.3d 789, 794 , 224 Cal. Rptr. 891 .) Admittedly, brandishing a firearm can result in violence.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Hall
Cal. Ct. App. · 2000 · confidence medium
(See People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 454, 456-457 [ 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370 ]; People v. Norton (1978) 80 Cal.App.3d Supp. 14, 26 [ 146 Cal.Rptr. 343 ].) “When the evidence shows the weapon was exhibited in a rude, angry or threatening manner, the offense is complete.” (People v. Mercer (1980) 113 Cal.App.3d 803, 806 [ 169 Cal.Rptr. 897 ]; People v. McKinzie (1986) 179 Cal.App.3d 789, 794 [ 224 Cal.Rptr. 891 ].) Admittedly, brandishing a firearm can result in violence.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Rathert (2×)
Cal. · 2000 · confidence medium
The Court of Appeal so construed the statute and, because the jury was not so instructed, reversed defendant’s burglary conviction. 3 “Specific and general intent,” we have cautioned, “have been notoriously difficult terms to define and apply . . . .” (People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 456 [ 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370 ].) The standard formulation of the two concepts appears in Hood’.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Rubalcava
Cal. · 2000 · confidence medium
When the definition refers to defendant’s intent to do some further act or achieve some additional consequence, the crime is deemed to be one of specific intent.” (People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 456-457 [ 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370 ].) Subdivision (a) of section 12020 describes a single criminal act— carrying a concealed dirk or dagger on the person—and makes no reference to any other act or consequence.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) People v. Rizo
Cal. · 2000 · confidence medium
(People v. Hood (1969) 1 Cal.3d 444, 457 [ 82 Cal.Rptr. 618 , 462 P.2d 370 ]; see also People v. McDaniel (1994) 22 Cal.App.4th 278, 284 [ 27 Cal.Rptr.2d 306 ] [“when the end in view looks to a further consequence of the.act, the intent is specific”]; see also People v. Bustamante (1997) 57 Cal.App.4th 693, 700, fn. 6 [ 67 Cal.Rptr.2d 295 ] [§ 113 should be a specific intent crime].) In light of this finding, the statutory language reveals two elements to the crime: (1) the manufacture, distribution or sale of “false documents”; and (2) the intent “to conceal the true citizenship or…
The PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent,
v.
DAVID KEITH HOOD, Defendant and Appellant
Crim. 13651.
California Supreme Court.
Dec 18, 1969.
462 P.2d 370
Counsel, Kelvin L. Taylor, under appointment by the Supreme Court, for Defendant and Appellant., Thomas C. Lynch, Attorney General, Robert R. Granucci, John T. Murphy and Jerome C. Utz, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent.
Traynor.
Cited by 428 opinions  |  Published
1 passages pin-cited by 1 case
Pinpoint authority: bottom 67%
Citer courts: New Mexico Supreme Court (4)

Opinion

TRAYNOR, C. J.

An indictment charged defendant in count I with assault with a deadly weapon upon a peace officer, Alfred Elia (Pen. Code, § 245, subd. (b)), in count II with battery upon a peace officer, Donald Kemper (Pen.. Code, § § 242, 243), and in count III with assault with intent to murder Officer Elia (Pen. Code, § 217). A jury found him guilty on counts I and III and not guilty on count II, and the trial court entered judgment on tne verdicts. The trial court also ordered that “Defendant shall serve the sentence in Count Three only ... as the sentence in Count One ... is withheld and will only be imposed if the sentence for Count Three is not carried out for any reason. . . .” Defendant appeals.

On September 11, 1967, at about 2 a.m., defendant, his brother Donald, and a friend, Leo Chilton, all of whom had been drinking for several hours, knocked on the door of the house of Susan Bueno, defendant’s former girlfriend, and asked if they could use the bathroom. Susan said no, but defendant forced his way in and started to hit her. He knocked her to the floor and kicked her. Donald Hood then took Susan aside, and defendant, Chilton, and Gene Saunders, a friend of Susan’s who was staying at the house, went to the kitchen and sat down.

Gilbert A. Nielsen, Susan’s next-door neighbor, was awakened by the sound of Susan’s screams and called the police. Officers Elia and Kemper responded to his call. After talking to Nielsen, they went to Susan’s house, knocked on the door, which was opened by Stella Gonzales, Susan’s cousin, and asked if “Susie” was there. Miss Gonzales said, “Yes, just a minute,” and in a few seconds Susan came running to the door crying. Officer Elia[*448] asked Susan if she had been beaten and who did it. She pointed to the kitchen and said, “They’re in there right now.” The two officers walked through the living room, where Susan, Susan’s seven-year-old son Ronnie, and Stella remained, and went into the kitchen. There they observed defendant on the righthand side of the room leaning against a door. On the left side of the kitchen, the three other men were seated at a table. Officer Elia walked to the middle of the room and questioned the men at the table. Defendant interrupted the questioning and asked Officer Elia if he had a search warrant. Officer Elia replied that he did not need one since the person who rented the house had given him permission to enter. Defendant then directed a stream of obscenities at Officer Elia, who turned and, according to his testimpny, started to place defendant under arrest for a violation of Penal Code section 415 (using vulgar, profane, or indecent language within the presence or hearing of women or children). He got no further than to say, “Okay fella, you are. . . ,” when defendant swung at him with his fist. When Officer Kemper attempted to go to Officer Elia’s assistance, Donald Hood jumped on him from behind. During the ensuing struggle, Officer Elia fell with defendant on top of him in a corner of a pantry adjoining the kitchen at the rear. While struggling on the floor, Officer Elia felt a tug at his gun belt and then heard two shots fired.

A third officer, Laurence Crocker, who had arrived at the house shortly after the other two officers, came into the kitchen as the scuffle between Officer Elia and defendant was beginning. After he had control of Donald Hood, he looked across the kitchen and saw defendant with a gun in his right hand. He testified that defendant pointed the gun towards Officer Elia’s midsection and pulled the trigger twice.

Both Officers Crocker and Kemper testified that after the shots, defendant’s arm came up over his head with the revolver in his hand. The struggle continued into the bathroom. Defendant was finally subdued when Officer Elia regained possession of the gun and held it against the side of defendant’s neck. Officer Elia then noticed that defendant had shot him once in each leg.

The foregoing evidence is clearly sufficient to support the verdicts.

Defendant contends that the court failed properly to instruct the jury with respect to lesser included offenses to the offense charged in count I, and that it also erred in instructing on the effect of intoxication with respect to the offenses charged in both counts I and III.

The court instructed that, “The offense of assault with a deadly weapon, with which defendant ... is charged in Count One of the indictment necessarily includes the lesser offense of assault.” This instruction incorrectly referred to the crime charged merely as assault with a deadly weapon[*449] (Pen. Code, § 245, subd. (a)) [1] instead of assault with a deadly weapon upon a peace officer (Pen. Code, § 245, subd. (b) ). [2] It thus served to blur the distinctions between these two offenses. Moreover, the court did not instruct the jury that assault with a deadly weapon upon a peace officer includes the lesser offenses of assault with a deadly weapon as well as simple assault, or that the jury could convict defendant of no more than assault with a deadly weapon if it found that Officer Elia was not engaged in the performance of his duties or that defendant neither knew nor reasonably should have known that he was so engaged. As instructed, the jury could only convict defendant of simple assault or assault with a deadly weapon upon a peace officer. Defendant, however, did not request an instruction that he could be found guilty of the lesser offense of assault with a deadly weapon. Accordingly, the question presented is whether the court erred in failing to give such an instruction on its own motion.

The general rule is that the trial court must instruct the jury on the general principles of law relevant to the issues raised by the evidence, even though not requested to do so, but need not instruct on its own motion on specific points developed at the trial. (People v. Wilson (1967) 66 Cal.2d 749, 759 [59 Cal.Rptr. 156, 427 P.2d 820]; People v. Jackson (1963) 59 Cal.2d 375, 380 [29 Cal.Rptr. 505, 379 P.2d 937]; People v. Bevins (1960) 54 Cal.2d 71, 77 [4 Cal.Rptr. 504, 351 P.2d 776]; People v. Wade (1959) 53 Cal.2d 322, 334 [1 Cal.Rptr. 683, 348 P.2d 116]; People v. Putnam (1942) 20 Cal.2d 885, 890 [129 P.2d 367]; People v. Warren (1940) 16 Cal.2d 103, 116-117 [104 P.2d 1024], See People v. Martin (1919) 44 Cal.App. 45 [185 P. 1003]; People v. Stirgios (1913) 23 Cal.App. 48 [136 P. 957]; People v. Rogers (1912) 163 Cal. 476, 484 [126 P. 143] (first statement of the rule in substantially its present form); People v. Olsen (1889) 80 Cal. 122, 128-129 [22 P. 125] (rule implied in dictum).) In People v. Wade, supra, we pointed out that the “general principles of law governing the case” are “those principles of law commonly or closely and openly connected with the facts of the case before the court.” As we indicated in Wade, the rule is designed to afford protection against the inadvertence of trial counsel.

As the Court of Appeal noted in People v. Cooper (1968) 268 Cal.App.2d 34, 36-41 [73 Cal.Rptr. 608], the cases establishing this general[*450] rule are in conflict with another line of cases that hold that it is not error for the court to fail to instruct on lesser included offenses on its own motion, even though such an instruction would be supported by the evidence. (People v. Bailey (1904) 142 Cal. 434 [76 P. 49]; People v. Hite (1901) 135 Cal. 76 [67 P. 57]; People v. Franklin (1886) 70 Cal. 641 [11 P. 797]; People v. Smith (1963) 223 Cal.App.2d 225, 237 [35 Cal.Rptr. 719]; People v. Calderon (1957) 155 Cal.App.2d 526, 530 [318 P.2d 498]; People v. Williams (1956) 141 Cal.App.2d 849, 853 [297 P.2d 759].) We believe that there is no basis for such,an exception to the general rule. Accordingly, to the extent that the foregoing cases support a special rule for lesser included offenses, they are overruled.

We must therefore determine whether the distinction between assault with a deadly weapon upon a peace officer and assault with a deadly weapon is a principle of law “commonly or closely and openly connected with the facts of the case before the court” (People v. Wade, supra), and whether the evidence in this case clearly indicated that Officer Elia might not have been engaged in the performance of his duties or that defendant might not have known or had reason to know that he was so engaged.

The officers were in uniform and defendant had reason to know they were lawfully present in the house to investigate a disturbance. If there was no evidence that Officer Elia exceeded the scope of his duties, the distinction between the two offenses would not be a significant issue. There was such evidence, however. Defendant testified that as Officer Elia turned and came toward him, he thought the officer was drawing his gun and was going to shoot him. This evidence was sufficient to raise the question whether Officer Elia had become angered and ceased to be engaged in the performance of his duties, or whether defendant could reasonably have so believed. Indeed, it was this very evidence that raised the issue of self-defense, on which the court instructed fully. Thus, the issue whether the officer exceeded the scope of his duties, or whether defendant reasonably believed he had, was “closely and openly connected with the facts” before the court, and it was therefore error for the court to fail to instruct on the lesser included offense of assault with a deadly weapon. Moreover, that error was prejudicial, for it deprived defendant of his constitutional right to have the jury determine every material issue presented by the evidence. (People v. Graham (1969) 71 Cal.2d 303, 310 [78 Cal.Rptr. 217, 455 P.2d 153]; People v. Mosher (1969) ante, pp. 379, 393 [82 Cal.Rptr. 379, 461 P.2d 659].)

There is no merit in the contention that in rejecting the defense of self-defense the jury must have rejected the evidence that Officer Elia exceeded[*451] the scope of his duties. The court instructed the jury that “Where a person seeks or induces a quarrel which leads to the necessity in his own defense of using force against his adversary, the right to stand his ground and thus defend himself is not immediately available to him, but, instead he must first decline to carry on the affray, must honestly endeavor to escape from it, and must fairly and clearly inform his adversary of his desire for peace and of his abandonment of the contest. Only when he has done so will the law justify him in thereafter standing his ground and using force upon his antagonist.” The court also instructed the jury that, “If an assault with the fists is being made on a person, but without intent to kill or to do great bodily harm, and if the assault is not likely to produce great bodily injury, and if the one thus attacked is not deceived as to the character of such ah assault, he is not justified in using a deadly weapon in self defense.” The jury could have rejected the defense of self-defense under either of these instructions without reaching the question whether Officer Elia exceeded the scope of his duties by initiating an assault upon defendant, or the question whether defendant reasonably so believed. Under the first instruction the jury could have found that defendant sought or induced a quarrel by the stream of obscenities directed at Officer Elia and thereafter failed to seek to withdraw from the fray, thus forfeiting his right to defend himself. Under the second instruction the jury could have found that at the time defendant seized the gun, he should have realized that the officer’s assault upon him did not justify the use of a deadly weapon. Under either of these hypotheses, defendant could still be not guilty of assault with a deadly weapon upon a peace officer within the meaning of subdivision (b) of section 245 if Officer Elia exceeded the scope of his duties by responding to defendant’s insults with excessive force, or if defendant reasonably so believed. (People v. Curtis (1969) 70 Cal.2d 347, 357, fn. 9 [74 Cal.Rptr. 713, 450 P.2d 33].) We note in fairness to the trial court that its failure so to instruct the jury was justified at that time by such decisions as People v. Baca (1966) 247 Cal.App.2d 487, 495 [55 Cal.Rptr. 681] (subsequently disapproved in People v. Curtis, supra, p. 356,fn. 6).

The judgment must also be reversed as to count III, for the court gave hopelessly conflicting instructions on the effect of intoxication. [3]

[*452] Although the court correctly instructed the jury to consider the evidence that defendant was intoxicated in determining whether he had the specific intent to commit murder, it followed that instruction with the complete text of CALJIC No. 78 (revised), which applies to crimes that require proof only of a general criminal intent. The court in no way made clear to the jury that the latter instruction did not apply to the charge of assault with intent to commit murder. The giving of such conflicting instructions with respect to a crime requiring proof of a specific intent is error (People v. Spencer (1963) 60 Cal.2d 64, 87 [31 Cal.Rptr. 782, 383 P.2d 134]; People v. Ford (1964) 60 Cal.2d 772, 796 [36 Cal.Rptr. 620, 388 P.2d 892]; People v. Arriola (1958) 164 Cal.App.2d 430, 434-435 [330 P.2d 683]). That error was clearly prejudicial in this case. There was substantial evidence that defendant was drunk. He testified that he was not aware that he ever had the gun in his possession or fired it. Its discharge during the scuffle could be reconciled with an intent to kill, an intent to inflict only bodily injury, or with no intent to fire it at all. Had the jury not been given conflicting instructions on the significance of defendant’s intoxication, it is reasonably probable that it would have reached a result more favorable to defendant on count III. (People v. Watson (1956) 46 Cal.2d 818, 836 [299 P.2d 243].)

To guide the trial court on retrial, we consider the question of the effect of intoxication on the crime of assault with a deadly weapon.

Many cases have held that neither assault with a deadly weapon nor simple assault is a specific intent crime. [4] A number of these cases held that[*453] an assault with a deadly weapon could be predicated on reckless, as well as intentional, conduct. “ ‘Where the act is both unlawful and wrongful, and well calculated to inflict serious personal injury, the law will imply malice and an unlawful intention and override any actual intention existing in the mind of the aggressor. Thus, while it is not an assault to fire a gun in the air for the purpose of frightening another, it is an assault, without regard to the aggressor’s intention, to fire a gun at another or in the direction in which he is standing. The law will not tolerate such a reckless disregard for human life.’ ” (People v. Peak, supra, 66 Cal.App.2d 894, 901, quoting from 4 Am.Jur., § 6, p. 130.) Penal Code section 245 “provides that ‘Every person who commits an assault... with a deadly weapon or instrument or by any means or force likely to produce great bodily injury,’ is guilty of that offense. The intention to actually injure another is not mentioned in that section. ... If a rifle is deliberately and unlawfully fired toward another person in a manner ‘likely to produce great bodily injury,’ an assault with a deadly weapon may be accomplished even if the defendant does not really intend to hit the victim.” (People v. Corlett, supra, 67 Cal.App.2d 33, 54-55.) (See also People v. Vasquez (1927) 85 Cal.App. 575 [259 P. 1005].)

The first clear signs of doubt that an assault with a deadly weapon was not a specific intent crime are found in People v. Carmen (1951) 36 Cal.2d[*454] 768 [228 P.2d 281]. The defendant was convicted of first degree murder and assault with intent to murder. As to the murder charge, he contended that he stumbled as he approached the car in which his victim was sitting and that the gun was discharged accidentally. The trial court refused to give an instruction on manslaughter, although requested to do so by both parties. In reversing the murder conviction, this court stated (p. 775):

‘If the act committed by defendant was unlawful but did not amount to a felony then his crime would be manslaughter. The unlawful act would fall short of assault with a deadly weapon (Pen. Code, § 245), or even assault (Pen. Code, § 240), if the jury chose to believe his testimony that he had no intent to kill or injure anyone. This follows from the definition of an assault as ‘an unlawful attempt, coupled with a present ability, to commit a violent injury on the person of another.’ (Pen. Code, § 240.) One could not very well ‘attempt’ or try to ‘commit’ an injury on the person of another if he had no intent to cause any injury to such other person. Assault with a deadly weapon is nothing more than an assault where there is used either a deadly weapon or any means of force likely to produce ‘great’ bodily injury. (Pen. Code, § 245.) The crime here involved, if defendant’s testimony is accepted as true, would seem to be a misdemeanor. ‘Evéry person who, except in self-defense, in the presence of any other person, draws or exhibits any firearm, whether loaded or unloaded, or any other deadly weapon whatsoever, in a rude, angry or threatening manner, or who in any manner, unlawfully uses the same in any fight or quarrel is guilty of a misdemeanor.’ (Pen. Code, § 417.)”

The opinion then expressly disapproved the cases that had held reckless conduct to be a sufficient basis for assault. (People v. Peak, supra, 66 Cal.App.2d 894; People v. Corlett, supra, 67 Cal.App.2d 33; People v. Rumbaugh, supra, 48 Cal.App.2d 791.)

Carmen was followed in People v. Wilson (1967) 66 Cal.2d 749, 759 [59 Cal.Rptr. 156, 427 P.2d 820]. Subsequently, in People v. Coffey (1967) 67 Cal.2d 204, 221-222 [60 Cal.Rptr. 457, 430 P.2d 15], we said, “[Defendant testified at trial that he had no intention of harming or killing anyone and that he at no time aimed his gunshots at any person identifiable by him as such. It would seem clear that if defendant’s testimony on this point were believed by the jury, it could not properly find violations of section 217 or section 245, subdivision (b), of the Penal Code, for basic to the indicated varieties of aggravated assault is the crime of simple assault. ‘An assault is an unlawful attempt, coupled with a present ability, to commit a violent injury on the person of another.’ (Pen. Code, § 240.) ‘One could not very well “attempt” or try to “commit” an injury on the person of another if he had no intent to cause any injury to such other person. . . .’ (People v.[*455] Carmen [citation omitted].) Even if the jury had been instructed as to section 834a of the Penal Code, it is clear that a breach of the duty of submission [to arrest] imposed by that section, absent any intent to cause injury to a police officer, could not result in aggravated assault of the varieties here charged.”

It should be noted that the opinion in Coffey did not use the words “specific intent,” and that the opinion in Carmen, after the language quoted above, continued with the statement (p. 776): “It is true that in assault cases intent need not be specific—to cause any particular injury and it may be implied from the act (People v. McCoy, 25 Cal.2d 177 [153 P.2d 315]), but the intent is a question for the jury.”

Carmen, Wilson, and Coffey have given rise to directly conflicting opinions in the Courts of Appeal. In People v. Fanning (1968) 265 Cal.App.2d 729, 734 [71 Cal.Rptr. 641], the court declared, “In spite of occasional statements to the contrary . . . , we think it now settled that assault is a specific intent crime. . . .” (Citing People v. Carmen, People v. Coffey, and People v. Wilson, supra; People v. Wheeler (1968) 260 Cal.App.2d 522, 525, fn. 4 [67 Cal.Rptr. 246]; People v. Corson (1963) 221 Cal.App.2d 579, 581 [34 Cal.Rptr. 584]. See also, People v. Roshid (1961) 191 Cal.App.2d 692, 693-694 [12 Cal.Rptr. 794].) On the other hand, People v. Morrow, supra, 268 Cal.App.2d 939, 953, expressly rejected the Fanning conclusion and held that assault with a deadly weapon “does not require proof of a specific intent to harm the victim but relies upon the general rule that what was done by [defendant] shows that harm was intended by the aggravated assault.” The Morrow court reviewed many of the earlier cases and decided that such an overwhelming line of authority could not be considered overruled merely by implication from Carmen, Wilson, and Coffey.

The distinction between specific and general intent crimes evolved as a judicial response to the problem of the intoxicated offender. That problem is to reconcile two competing theories of what is just in the treatment of those who commit crimes while intoxicated. On the one hand, the moral culpability of a drunken criminal is frequently less than that of a sober person effecting a like injury. On the other hand, it is commonly felt that a person who voluntarily gets drunk and while in that state commits a crime should not escape the consequences. (See Hall, General Principles of Criminal Law (2d ed. 1960), p. 537.)

Before the nineteenth century, the common law refused to give any effect to the fact that an accused committed a crime while intoxicated. The judges were apparently troubled by this rigid traditional rule, however, for there were a number of attempts during the early part of the nineteenth century[*456] to arrive at a more humane, yet workable, doctrine. [5] The theory that these judges explored was that evidence of intoxication could be considered to negate intent, whenever intent was an element of the crime charged. As Professor Hall notes, however, such an exculpatory doctrine could eventually have undermined the traditional rule entirely, since some form of mens rea is a requisite of all but strict liability offenses. (Hall, Intoxication and Criminal Responsibility, 57 Harv.L.Rev. 1045, 1049.) To limit the operation of the doctrine and achieve a compromise between the conflicting feelings of sympathy and reprobation for the intoxicated offender, later courts both in England and this country drew a distinction between so-called specific intent and general intent crimes.

Specific, and general intent have been notoriously difficult terms to define and apply, and a number of text writers recommend that they be abandoned altogether. (Hall, General Principles of Criminal Law, supra, p. 142; Williams, Criminal Law—The General Part (2d ed. 1961) § 21, p. 49.) Too often the characterization of a particular crime as one of specific or general intent is determined solely by the presence or absence of words describing psychological phenomena—“intent” or “malice,” for example— in the statutory language defining the crime. When the definition of a crime consists of only the description of a particular act, without reference to[*457] intent to do a further act or achieve a future consequence, we ask whether the defendant intended to do the proscribed act. This intention is deemed to be a general criminal intent. When the definition refers to defendant’s intent to do some, further act or achieve some additional consequence, the crime is deemed to be one of specific intent. There is no real difference, however, only a linguistic one, between an intent to do an act already performed and an intent to do that same act in the future.

The language of Penal Code section 22, drafted in 1872 when “specific” and “general” intent were not yet terms of art, is somewhat broader than those terms: “No act committed by a person while in a state of voluntary intoxication is less criminal by reason of his having been in such condition. But whenever the actual existence of any particular purpose, motive, or intent is a necessary element to constitute any particular species or degree of crime, the jury may take into consideration the fact that the accused was intoxicated at the time, in determining the purpose, motive, or intent with which he committed the act.” Even this statement of the relevant policy is no easier to apply to particular crimes. We are still confronted with the difficulty of characterizing the mental element of a given crime as a particular purpose, motive, or intent necessary to constitute the offense, or as something less than that to which evidence of intoxication is not pertinent.

Even if we assume that the presence or absence of words clearly denoting mental activity is a valid criterion for determining the significance of intoxication, our present problem is not resolved. The difficulty with applying such a test to the crime of assault or assault with a deadly weapon is that no word in the relevant code provisions unambiguously denotes a particular mental element, yet the word “attempt” in Penal Code section 240 strongly suggests goal-directed, intentional behavior. [6] This uncertainty accounts for the conflict over whether assault is a crime only of intention or also of recklessness.

We need not reconsider our position in Carmen that an assault cannot be predicated merely on reckless conduct. Even if assault requires an intent to commit a battery on the victim, it does not follow that the crime is one in which evidence of intoxication ought to be considered in determining whether the defendant had that intent. It is true that in most cases specific intent has come to mean an intention to do a future act or achieve a particular result, and that assault is appropriately characterized as a specific intent crime under this definition. An assault, however, is equally well[*458] characterized as a general intent crime under the definition of general intent as an intent merely to do a violent act. Therefore, whatever reality the distinction between specific and general intent may have in other contexts, the difference is chimerical in the case of assault with a deadly weapon or simple assault. Since the definitions of both specific intent and general intent cover the requisite intent to commit a battery, the decision whether or not to give effect to evidence of intoxication must rest on other considerations.

A compelling consideration is the effect of alcohol on human behavior. A significant effect of alcohol is to distort judgment and relax the controls on aggressive and anti-social impulses. (Beck and Parker, The Intoxicated Offender—A Problem of Responsibility (1966), 44 Can. Bar Rev. 563, 570-573; Muelberger, Medico-Legal Aspects of Alcohol Intoxication (1956), 35 Mich. State Bar J. 36, 40-41.) Alcohol apparently has less effect on the ability to engage in simple goal-directed behavior, although it may impair the efficiency of that behavior. In other words, a drunk man is capable of forming an intent to do something simple, such as strike another, unless he is so drunk that he has reached the stage of unconsciousness. What he is not as capable as a sober man of doing is exercising judgment about the social consequences of his acts or controlling his impulses toward anti-social acts. He is more likely to act rashly and impulsively and to be susceptible to passion and anger. It would therefore be anomalous to allow evidence of intoxication to relieve a man of responsibility for the crimes of assault with a deadly weapon or simple assault, which are so frequently committed in just such a manner. As the court said in Parker v. United States (D.C. Cir. 1966) 359 F.2d 1009, 1012-1013, “Whatever ambiguities there may be in distinguishing between specific and general intent to determine whether drunkenness constitutes a defense, an offense of this nature is not one which requires an intent that is susceptible to negation through a showing of voluntary intoxication.”

Those crimes that have traditionally been characterized as crimes of specific intent are not affected by our holding here. The difference in mental activity between formulating an intent to commit a battery and formulating an intent to commit a battery for the purpose of raping or killing may be slight, but it is sufficient to justify drawing a line between them and considering evidence of intoxication in the one case and disregarding it in the other. [7] Accordingly, on retrial the court should not instruct the jury[*459] to consider evidence of defendant’s intoxication in determining whether he committed assault with a deadly weapon on a peace officer or any of the lesser assaults included therein. People v. Fanning, supra, 265 Cal.App.2d 729, and any case implying the contrary are disapproved.

To preclude double punishment for a single assault (Pen. Code, § 654), the trial court stayed execution of the sentence on count I, which carries a maximum penalty of 15 years (Pen. Code, § 245, subd. (b)), and ordered that defendant serve the sentence on count III, which carries a maximum penalty of 14 years (Pen. Code, § 217). Accordingly, had defendant not appealed, his maximum term would have been 14 years. To preclude penalizing him for appealing, the court may not impose a maximum sentence of more than 14 years if on retrial he is again found guilty on count I or count III or both. (People v. Henderson (1963) 60 Cal.2d 482, 495-497 [35 Cal.Rptr. 77, 386 P.2d 677]; People v. Ali (1967) 66 Cal.2d 277, 281-282 [57 Cal.Rptr. 348, 424 P.2d 932]; In re Ferguson (1965) 233 Cal.App.2d 79, 81-82 [443 Cal.Rptr. 325].)

The judgment is reversed.

McComb, J., Peters, J., Tobriner, J., Mosk, J., Burke, J., and Sullivan, J., concurred.

1

“Every person who commits an assault upon the person of another with a deadly weapon or instrument or by any means of force likely to produce great bodily injury is punishable. ...”

2

“Every person who commits an assault with a deadly weapon or instrument or by any means likely to produce great bodily injury upon the person of a peace officer or fireman, and who knows or reasonably should know that such victim is a peace officer or fireman engaged in the performance of his duties, when such peace officer or fireman is engaged in the performance of his duties shall be punished. . . .”

3

The court instructed:

“To constitute the crime of assault with intent to commit murder there must exist an assault and, in the mind of the perpetrator, a specific, preconceived intent to kill a human being.

“In a crime such as that of which defendant, David Keith Hood, is charged in Count Three of the indictment, there must exist a union or joint operation of act or conduct and a certain specific intent.

“In the crime of Assault With Intent to Commit Murder (Penal Code Section 217),[*452] there must exist in the mind of the perpetrator the specific intent to murder a human being, and unless such intent so exists that crime is not committed.

“In the crime of assault with intent to commit murder of which the defendant, David Hood, is accused in count III of the indictment, a necessary element is the existence in the mind of the defendant of the specific intent to commit murder.

“If the evidence shows that the defendant was intoxicated at the time of the alleged offense, the jury should consider his state of intoxication in determining if defendant had such specific intent.

“Intoxication of a person is voluntary if it results from his willing partaking of any intoxicating liquor, drug or other substance when he knows that it is capable of an intoxicating effect or when he willingly assumes the risk of that effect as a possibility.

“Our law provides that ‘no act committed by a person while in a state of voluntary intoxication is less criminal by reason of his having been in such condition.’

“This means that drunkenness, if the evidence shows that the defendant was in such a condition when allegedly he committed the (a) crime charged, is not of itself a defense in this case. It may throw light on the occurrence and aid you in determining what took place, but when a person in a state of intoxication, voluntarily produced by himself, commits a crime such as that (any of those) charged against the defendant in this case, the law does not permit him to use his own vice as a shelter against the normal legal consequences of his conduct.”

4

People v. McMakin (1857) 8 Cal. 547, 548; People v. Marseiler (1886) 70 Cal. 98 [11 P. 503]; People v. Franklin (1886) 70 Cal. 641 [11 P. 797]; People v. Leyba (1887) 74 Cal. 407, 409 [16 P. 200]; People v. Wells (1904) 145 Cal. 138, 140 [78 P. 470]; People v. McCoy (1944) 25 Cal.2d 177, 194 [153 P.2d 315]; People v.[*453] Sanchez (1950) 35 Cal.2d 522, 526-528 [219 P.2d 9]; People v. Price (1908) 9 Cal.App. 218, 221 [98 P. 547]; People v. Stephens (1916) 29 Cal.App. 616, 622 [157 P. 570, 572] (opinion of Supreme Court appended in denying petition for hearing); People v. Mendez (1924) 67 Cal.App. 724 [228 P. 349]; People v. Lopez (1927) 81 Cal.App. 199 [253 P. 169]; People v. Lim Dum Dong (1938) 26 Cal.App.2d 135 [78 P.2d 1026]; People v. Bumbaugh (1941) 48 Cal.App.2d 796 [120 P.2d 703]; People v. Schmidt (1944) 66 Cal.App.2d 253, 256 [152 P.2d 1021]; People v. Peak (1944) 66 Cal.App.2d 894, 901 [153 P.2d 464]; People v. Corlett (1944) 67 Cal.App.2d 33, 54-55 [153 P.2d 595, 964]; People v. Duncan (1945) 72 Cal.App.2d 423 [164 P.2d 510]; People v. Griffin (1949) 90 Cal.App.2d 116, 120-121 [202 P.2d 573]; People v. Ingram (1949) 91 Cal.App.2d 912, 914 [206 P.2d 36]; People v. Thompson (1949) 93 Cal.App.2d 780 [209 P.2d 819]; People v. Walker (1950) 99 Cal.App.2d 238, 242 [221 P.2d 287]; People v. Laya (1954) 123 Cal.App.2d 7, 15 [266 P.2d 157]; People v. Swansboro (1962) 200 Cal.App.2d 831, 837 [19 Cal.Rptr. 527]; People v. Finley (1963) 219 Cal.App.2d 330, 340 [33 Cal.Rptr. 31]; People v. Herd (1963) 220 Cal.App.2d 847, 850 [34 Cal.Rptr. 411; People v. Sandoval (1963) 222 Cal.App.2d 348, 351 [35 Cal.Rptr. 227]; People v. Claborn (1964) 224 Cal.App.2d 38, 42 [36 Cal.Rptr. 132]; Newman v. Larson (1964) 225 Cal.App.2d 22, 24 [36 Cal.Rptr. 883]; People v. Gaines (1966) 247 Cal.App.2d 141, 148 [55 Cal.Rptr. 283]; People v. Wright (1968) 258 Cal.App.2d 762, 766-767 [66 Cal.Rptr. 95]; People v. Morrow (1969) 268 Cal.App.2d 939, 949-954 [74 Cal.Rptr. 551], See 4 Am.Jur., Assault and Battery, § 6, p. 130; 6 Am.Jur.2d, Assault and Battery, §§ 13-20, pp 21-24; Fricke, Cal. Criminal Law (8th ed.) p. 186; 1 Witkin, Cal. Crimes (1963) pp. 249-250. But, as to the presence of some confusion, compare 3 Cal.Jur., Assault and Battery, § 14, pp. 197-198 with id., § 19, p. 203; and see 5 Cal.Jur.2d, Assault and Battery, § 4, pp. 304-307; 92 A.L.R.2d 635. At least one early case implies that assault requires the specific intent to injure. People v. Dodel (1888) 77 Cal. 293, 294 [19 P. 484].

5

In 1819 Holroyd, J., held in a murder case that, while voluntary drunkenness could not be an excuse, it should be considered in determining the issue of premeditation. (Rex v. Grindley, quoted in Rex v. Carroll (1835) 7 C. & P. 145, 173 Eng. Rep. 64.) In Regina v. Cruse (1838) 8 C. & P. 541, 173 Eng. Rep. 610, a case of .assault with intent to murder, the court instructed the jury that gross intoxication might disprove the intention required for the aggravated offense. With respect to a similar charge in Regina v. Monkhouse (1849) 4 Cox C. C. 55, Coleridge, J., said that the burden was on the accused to show .that his intoxication prevented him from using self-restraint or took away from him “the power of forming any specific intention.” This opinion was apparently the first to use the words “specific intention.”

“As if by accident, the ‘specific intention’ was seized upon as the important criterion. Yet the wording of Coleridge, I.’s summing-up shows that he did not mean to weave any particular magic with these words. This is obvious when he directs the jury in Monkhouse to make a proper assessment of both act and mind: ‘To ascertain whether or not [the lack of power to form any specific intention] did exist in this instance, you must take into consideration the quantity of spirit he had taken, as well as his specific conduct.’ Surely the adjective ‘specific’ simply means that the accused’s actions, mental processes and motives, that is, all the circumstances of the case, should be evaluated by the jury and viewed subjectively.” (Beck and Parker, The Intoxicated Offender—A Problem of Responsibility, 44 Can.BarRev. 563, 578.) Subsequent English cases of the nineteenth century did not stress Coleridge’s phrase, but explored the general thesis that intoxication was relevant to the issue of intent. Thus, in Regina v. Bentley (1850) 14 J.P. 671, the court stated that “the question of drunkenness is a fact which, among others, the jury may take into consideration in endeavouring to ascertain the intent.” In a form more akin to the present rule (Pen. Code, § 22), Stephen, J., told the jury in R. v. Doherty (1887) 16 Cox. C.C. 463, “when the crime is such that the intention of the party committing it is one of its constitutent elements you may look at the fact that a man was in drink in considering whether he formed the intention necessary to constitute the crime.”

6

Penal Code, section 240 provides: “An assault is an unlawful attempt, coupled with a present ability, to commit a violent injury on the person of another.”

It was the strong suggestion of intent in the ordinary usage of the word “attempt” that was at the basis of this court’s remark in People v. Carmen, 36 Cal.2d 768, 775 [228 P.2d 281], that “[o]ne could not very well ‘attempt’ or try to ‘commit’ an injury on the person of another if he had no intent to cause any injury to such other person.”

7

It should be pointed out that the fact that intent may be inferred from the defendant’s conduct does not affect the nature of the requisite intent. Whether the intent be merely to do that which was done or to do a further act or achieve a particular consequence, the jury may infer from defendant’s acts that defendant acted with the requisite intent, if such an inference is warranted by the evidence. As the Court of Appeal said in People v. Fanning, supra, 265 Cal.App.2d 729, 734, fn. 4, in discussing whether assault.was a specific or a general intent crime, “The confusion seems to be,[*459] in part at least, traceable to the rule that the intent may be inferred from the act. (People v. McCoy, 25 Cal.2d 177, 194-195 [153 P.2d 315].) The fact that one element of a crime may be inferred from proof of another does not decrease the number of elements.” In the crimes of simple assault and assault with a deadly weapon, the jury may infer from defendant’s conduct that he entertained the necessary intent to commit an injury. Such an inference does not affect the nature of that intent or determine what significance should be accorded to evidence of intoxication.