California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from The People v. Montes, B216923, Super. Ct. No. NA081455 (Cal. App. 2010):
"The applicable federal and state standards regarding prosecutorial misconduct are well established. ' "A prosecutor's... intemperate behavior violates the federal Constitution when it comprises a pattern of conduct 'so egregious that it infects the trial with such unfairness as to make the conviction a denial of due process.' " ' [Citations.] Conduct by a prosecutor that does not render a criminal trial fundamentally unfair is prosecutorial misconduct under state law only if it involves ' " 'the use of deceptive or reprehensible methods to attempt to persuade either the court or the jury.' " ' [Citation.]" (People v. Samayoa (1997) 15 Cal.4th 795, 841.) "As a general rule a defendant may not complain on appeal of prosecutorial misconduct unless in a timely fashionand on the same groundthe defendant made an assignment of misconduct and requested that the jury be admonished to disregard the impropriety. [Citation.]" (Ibid.; see also People v. Thompson (2010) 49 Cal.4th 79, 126.)
A. The prosecutor's cross-examination of defendant.
The above passage should not be considered legal advice. Reliable answers to complex legal questions require comprehensive research memos. To learn more visit www.alexi.com.