Rehnquist Blocks California Ruling on Death Penalty

WASHINGTON — Supreme Court Justice William H. Rehnquist cleared the way Thursday for California authorities to appeal a far-ranging state Supreme Court decision that they said could jeopardize up to 170 death sentences imposed on convicted murderers.

Rehnquist issued a stay blocking implementation of a Dec. 5 ruling by the state high court in the case of Albert Greenwood Brown Jr., pending a decision later by the justices on whether to grant the case a formal review.

In a five-page opinion, Rehnquist said that the high court probably would agree to review and eventually reverse the decision because it conflicted with past rulings by the justices. If a review is granted, the court would make its ruling during the 1986-87 term.

Deadline for Appeal

Had the stay not been issued by April 4, prosecutors would have been forced to proceed with a new penalty trial for Brown and would not have been able to appeal the California court ruling to the justices, state authorities said.

The California court, while leaving Brown’s conviction intact, overturned his death sentence because the trial judge had instructed jurors not to be swayed by “mere sympathy.” The state court said the instruction was unconstitutional, unfairly preventing jurors from considering mitigating factors that might spare Brown’s life.

Rehnquist, however, said the instruction permissibly focused the jury’s attention on evidence in the case--rather than sentiment--and actually could help capital defendants by reducing the possibility that juries would be swayed by sympathy for the victim.

A second issue in the Brown case involves another portion of the state court decision holding that juries should retain the discretion to refuse to impose capital punishment even when aggravating factors in the case outweigh mitigating factors.

Rehnquist, in a footnote, said he was expressing no view as to whether the high court would grant review on that second issue.

‘Certainly Encouraging’

California Deputy Atty. Gen. Jay M. Bloom called Rehnquist’s order “certainly encouraging” in the state’s effort to overturn the state court decision. He said it appeared that about 100 capital cases in California would be affected by the ruling on the “sympathy” instruction and as many as 170 cases by the holding on jury discretion.

The Brown case represents the state’s first opportunity to squarely present those two key death penalty issues to the U.S. Supreme Court and perhaps resolve the considerable uncertainty over the effects of the state court ruling, Bloom noted.

Brown was convicted of the 1980 murder of Susan Jordan, 15, in Riverside. Under the state court ruling, he still faces a life sentence for the crime.