People v. Taylor

Opinion

WERDEGAR, J.

Keith Desmond Taylor was convicted and sentenced to death for the 1994 murder of Marilyn Mishak, committed in the course of burglarizing Mishak’s Redlands home and robbing her. Defendant, who represented himself at trial, contends he was mentally incompetent to conduct his own defense and should not have been permitted to do so. We affirm the judgment.

Factual and Procedural Background

On the night of September 1, 1994, someone broke into Marilyn Mishak’s condominium and stabbed and strangled her to death. Defendant was tied to the burglary and killing primarily by his…