Cal.Sup.Ct.;
S228193

The California Supreme Court reversed a decision of the court of appeal. The court held that the court of appeal erred in concluding that a deceased codefendant's confession was properly admitted at trial for a limited, nonhearsay purpose, and not for the purpose of implicating the defendant..

Ruthetta Hopson was tried on charges that she, along with her boyfriend, Julius Thomas, was responsible for the 2011 murder of her housemate, Laverna Brown. In her trial testimony, Hopson pinned the blame on Thomas, who had since died. In rebuttal, the prosecution introduced a confession Thomas had given to detectives following his arrest, in which he pinned much of the blame on Hopson. Hopson was convicted.