Fain v. Superior Court

Opinion

MOSK, J.

By this petition for writ of mandate defendant William Archie Fain seeks to compel respondent superior court to grant his motion for change of venue prior to retrial of the penalty phase of his prosecution for murder and other crimes. After an independent review of the record, we have concluded there is a reasonable likelihood defendant cannot obtain a fair trial of this matter in Stanislaus County, and hence a change of venue must be ordered.

A chronology of the events and the attendant publicity follows:

On June 19, 1967, defendant stopped a car containing three high school…