Legal Opinion
People v. Zapata
California Court of Appeal
Decided October 7, 1963No. Crim. 3447PublishedCited by 43 opinions
1Opinion of the CourtFriedman, J.
Defendant Zapata was charged with possessing heroin, in violation of Health and Safety Code section 11500. Convicted after a nonjury trial, he appeals. Relying on Robinson v. California, 370 U.S. 660 [82 S.Ct. 141, 8 L.Ed 2d 758], he asserts that section 11500 is unconstitutionally applied here.
The Robinson case, decided in June 1962, held that imprisonment for narcotics addiction, viewed as an illness or status rather than an antisocial act, constitutes “cruel and unusual punishment” banned by the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments to the federal Constitution. Zapata now suggests that the…
2Cases cited15 opinions
- Ker v. CaliforniaSupreme Court of the United States · 1963
- Robinson v. CaliforniaSupreme Court of the United States · 1962
- People v. WellsCalifornia Supreme Court · 1949
- People v. GorshenCalifornia Supreme Court · 1959
- Priestly v. Superior CourtCalifornia Supreme Court · 1958
10 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.
3Cited by43 opinions
- Estelle v. WilliamsSupreme Court of the United States · 1976
- People v. ChaconCalifornia Supreme Court · 1968
- United States v. Lamont S. Carter, United States of America v. Jerome R. Patterson, United States of America v. Jerome R. PattersonCourt of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit · 1975
- People v. TaylorCalifornia Supreme Court · 1982
- Donald A. Bentley, Jr. v. Roger W. Crist, Warden of Montana State Prison, and the State of MontanaCourt of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit · 1972
38 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.