6DCA Oral Argument - 2026/08/04 Afternoon Session - Aug 04, 2026

argument

6DCA Oral Argument - 2026/08/04 Afternoon Session

California Sixth District Court of Appeal 1h 46m 8 chapters transcribed 9 days ago official recording ↗

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Transcript generated automatically by AI and may contain errors.

What is the purpose of the Sixth District Court of Appeal’s afternoon oral argument session?

Unknown 3:24

Good afternoon. Please be seated. Welcome to the Sixth District Court of Appeal for oral argument this afternoon. The Court has five matters on calendar. The fourth and fifth matter will be heard together. There will be a panel change after the third case. Let me mention, because we do have some remote appearances today, that the Court is pleased to offer the opportunity for remote appearances to counsel and litigants who request it. And we view it as an access to justice issue. But for those of you who are sitting in the audience, if there is a remote appearance, you will be able to hear everything, but you will not be able to see. At counsel's table and here on the bench, we have devices so that we're able to see on a screen anyone who's appearing remotely.

Unknown 4:18

If you want both the audio and the visual experience, you're welcome to step into the waiting room where we have a live stream. And we also archive all oral argument once it's completed on the website where you're able to see and hear everything that's occurred here in the courtroom. In addition, since I'm addressing technology, the justices have laptops here at the bench. So if you see us looking to the right, we have access to our briefs. your briefs, I should say, our notes, the record, everything that we need to conduct oral argument today. Give us just a moment to get situated and we will call the first case.

Unknown 5:37

First case on calendar is H051789, the people, plaintiff and respondent, versus Mario Alberto Lozano, appearing for appellant, Mr. Lozano, today. Counsel, if you could step to the podium, because everything's recorded from there. State your appearance and confirm your time estimate for us,

Wilder Lee 5:58

please. I am Wilder Lee, appearing for Mr. Lozano. I... I'm not sure what time I indicated, but I'll be under ten minutes in argument and reserve five minutes for a

Unknown 6:12

battle. So we'll say ten and five. You said twelve and three, but that's fine. Whatever works for you is fine with us.

Wilder Lee 6:19

I'll be short.

Unknown 6:20

All right. Thank you. Hold on, please. I'm going to get the appearance from the Attorney General's office, and then I'll call you back up. Thanks. Appearing for the Attorney General today.

Timothy Moore 6:30

Timothy Moore on behalf of the people, Your Honor.

Unknown 6:32

All right. Thank you. Fifteen minutes, Mr. Moore.

Wilder Lee 6:35

Yes, Your Honor.

Unknown 6:36

All right. Thank you. Mr. Lee.

Wilder Lee 6:38

Thank you. Thank you, Your Honor. Unless the court has questions about other issues, I want to focus on the first argument I raised in the briefing about Calcrim 522. While I believe my other arguments are strong, I believe they're sufficiently briefed, and I have a little bit more to say about Calcrim 522. It uses the word provocation once in its first sentence, and that provocation as used there has two different meanings. I tried to think of other situations where we use a word with two different meanings, and I don't think they're really appropriate for jury instructions. You look at comedy, sex, the double entendre, sarcasm, irony. None of those should be the goal of jury instructions. I think the goal should be plain and clear instructions that don't leave much up to the imagination.

Wilder Lee 7:34

If 522 is talking about two different types of provocation, then perhaps the first sentence should read provocations plural. And I think, though, the additional language in 522 reinforces the idea that only one type of provocation is being referred to. I think if you look at the second sentence, the weight and significance of the provocation, if any, are for you to decide. The use of the definite article, the, usually implies a single object or thing, especially, you know, it's not plural. I mean, it would be the difference between saying the cat or the cats. It tells you you're only talking about one thing. If they'd used the indefinite article A or if they'd made provocation plural, I think it would clarify what's going on.

Wilder Lee 8:31

When I think about this, I think you're supposed to read the jury instructions all together as one. Provocation is used here in this first sentence in a way that could very easily lead the jury to think you're talking about one definition of the word instead of two.