California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from People v. Johnson, 77 Cal.App.4th 410, 91 Cal.Rptr.2d 596 (Cal. App. 2000):
We view the instructions not in isolation but in light of the entire record to determine whether there is a reasonable likelihood that the jury understood the instructions as permitting a conviction on a standard less than beyond a reasonable doubt. (See People v. Carpenter (1997) 15 Cal.4th 312, 383; People v. Van Winkle, supra, 75 Cal.App.4th at pp. 142-143.) In making that determination, we consider the entire record of the trial, including other jury instructions and closing arguments to the jury. (Ibid.)
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