Does the word "innocence" or "innocent" constitute the burden of establishing a defendant's innocence?

California, United States of America


The following excerpt is from People v. Lopez, D074182 (Cal. App. 2018):

At the outset, we note this was a preliminary, procedural instruction made at the start of the final jury instructions as part of the explanation for how jurors should behave during deliberations, not an instruction defining burdens of proof or describing substantive elements of law. (People v. Cleveland (2004) 32 Cal.4th 704, 751, disapproved of on other grounds in People v. Doolin (2009) 45 Cal.4th 390 ["Instructions that contain the word 'innocence' or 'innocent' do not suggest that a defendant has the burden of establishing innocence"].) Treating this instruction like one that defines the burden of proof misconceives its focus.

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