People v. Fitzgerald

Defendant was convicted of murder in the first degree, and the jury fixed the penalty at death. Defendant’s motion for a new trial was denied. This appeal is automatic. (Pen. Code, § 1239, subd. (b).)

In a San Francisco bar on the evening of August 2, 1960, defendant overheard M. J. Young and George Bonn, the deceased, discuss a possible trip to Reno, Nevada, to gamble. He offered to drive them there, and they left San Francisco the following morning in a car driven by defendant that he had obtained from a friend.

Several miles east of Truckee they left the main highway. Defendant testified…