People v. Carson

Opinion

BROWN, J.

We granted review in this case to determine whether a trial court may terminate or revoke a criminal defendant’s right of self-representation only for in-court misconduct. (See Ferrel v. Superior Court (1978) 20 Cal.3d 888, 891 [144 Cal.Rptr. 610, 576 P.2d 93] (Ferrel).) We conclude that neither the language nor the logic of Faretta v. California (1975) 422 U.S. 806 [45 L.Ed.2d 562, 95 S.Ct. 2525] (Faretta) imposes such a limitation. Regardless of where it occurs, a court may order termination for misconduct that seriously threatens the core integrity of the trial.

Factual and…