People v. Scott (61 Cal. 4th 363, 2015)

Opinion

THE COURT.

Following a jury trial on a 15-count indictment, defendant Royce Lyn Scott was convicted of sexually assaulting and murdering 78-year-old Della Morris in her home. Specifically, Scott was convicted of the first degree murder of Morris (Pen. Code, § 187, subd. (a); count 4), burglary (id., § 459; count 1), and the rape and sodomy of Morris (id., §§ 261, subd. (a)(2), 286, subd. (c); counts 2 and 3). (All undesignated statutory references are to the Penal Code.) The jury found true the burglary, rape, and sodomy special-circumstance allegations. (§ 190.2, subd. (a)(17)(G), (C), (D).) The trial court found that Scott had one prior serious felony conviction (§ 667) and had served one prior prison term (§ 667.5, subd. (b)).

Before trial, the trial court granted Scott’s motion under section 995 to set aside the burglary charge in count 5. In addition, Scott had pleaded guilty to four counts of burglary (§ 459; counts 6 through 9), two counts of second degree robbery (§211; counts 10 and 11), two counts of assault with force likely to produce great bodily injury (§ 245, subd. (a)(1); counts 12 and 13), and two counts of battery (§ 242; counts 14 and 15). The charges in counts 6 through 15 concerned separate burglaries committed after the charged murder. Scott admitted the personal use of a deadly weapon allegations as to counts 9 through 12. (Former § 12022, subd. (b).)

After a penalty trial, the jury returned a verdict of death. The trial court denied Scott’s automatic application to modify the penalty verdict (§ 190.4, subd. (e)) and sentenced him to death on count 4. The court dismissed counts 14 and 15 under section 1385 and imposed a determinate sentence of 35 years eight months on the remaining charges and allegations.

This appeal is automatic. (§ 1239, subd. (b).) We affirm the judgment in its entirety.

I. Facts

A. Guilt Phase

1. Prosecution Evidence

a. The Murder of Della Morris

Della Morris (Morris) lived in Palm Springs with her brother, Webbie Morris (Webbie). On Thursday, July 9, 1992, Webbie went to bed around 10:00 p.m., while Morris watched television in the living room. When Webbie woke up the next morning around 8:00 a.m., he found her dead in her bedroom. He saw blood on the bed and underneath her body, and he noticed that the sliding door to his room and the one in the living room were open. A VCR and Webbie’s wallet were missing.

b. Investigation

Around 8:15 a.m., the police arrived at the Morris residence. They found no indication of forced entry or a struggle in Morris’s bedroom.

Warren Horton, a deputy coroner with the Riverside County coroner’s office, examined Morris’s body at the scene. He observed two small bruises under her right eye. Horton rolled her body over and saw a small amount of blood underneath her vaginal area. The blood appeared dried and had stained Morris’s buttocks and the bedsheet. Horton found a small hair directly underneath her pubic area that did not appear to be consistent with her pubic hair.

Darryl Garber, a forensic pathologist and independent contractor with the County of Riverside, performed an autopsy. Garber found multiple abrasions and contusions on the right side of Morris’s face, left nostril, and left anterior neck. He also found pinpoint hemorrhages in her eyes consistent with strangulation or smothering. Inside Morris’s mouth, Garber found evidence of bruising on her cheek and tongue associated with smothering. Garber also found evidence of traumatic sexual assault, including contusions to Morris’s vaginal area and abrasions to, and signs of dilatation of, her anus. Garber opined that the sexual assault occurred before death and that Morris died from strangulation and smothering.

Garber used a sexual assault kit to gather evidence from Morris’s body, taking swabs from her mouth, vagina, and rectum, and collecting fingernail clippings and hair samples from her head and pubic area.

Ricci Cooksey, a senior criminalist with the state Department of Justice, examined the contents of the sexual assault kit, blood samples taken from Morris, and bedding obtained during the investigation. Cooksey found sperm cells on the vaginal and rectal swabs and/or two stains on a bedsheet.

On November 4, 1992, police arrested Scott during a burglary of the Palm Springs home of Kenneth Osburn and Jeffrey Cole, which is discussed below. While Scott was in custody, Heather Gunkel, a registered nurse and independent contractor with the Palm Springs Police Department, used a sexual assault kit to collect blood, saliva and hair samples, including pubic hair, from Scott.

Cooksey had typed Scott’s blood, saliva, and hair samples, and she had analyzed the hair samples and hair taken from the murder scene. Cooksey opined that four hair strands taken from the murder scene were consistent with and could have come from Scott’s pubic area and that there were no major discrepancies between the murder scene hairs and Scott’s. The murder scene hairs did not come from Morris or Webbie.

Donald Jones, a criminalist with the San Bernardino Sheriff’s Department crime laboratory, performed RFLP (restriction fragment length polymorphism) analysis on DNA extracted from the blood samples taken from Morris and Scott, the sperm cells found on the vaginal and rectal swabs obtained from Morris, and the sperm cells found on the two stains on the bedsheet. Jones concluded that the DNA extracted from the vaginal swabs and from each of the stains on the bedsheet came from a single donor, and that the DNA profile of each of these samples matched Scott’s. Jones testified that the DNA was “130 million times more likely to come from [Scott] than it is from any other black chosen at random in the population.”

c. Other Burglaries Nearby

Scott pleaded guilty to each of the Palm Springs burglaries described below. Evidence of each crime was admitted in the guilt phase for the limited purpose of showing his intent to burglarize Morris’s house.

Around 2:30 a.m. on August 3, 1992, Dorothy Nancy Pruss heard a rustling noise near her kitchen. Pruss was not certain whether she had locked the sliding glass door near the kitchen that led outside. She checked the house and saw Scott inside, holding her purse and fanny pack. Both items had been on a dining room chair near the sliding glass door. Scott asked Pruss to tell him where her money was. Press said she had no money and screamed. After Pruss’s roommate ran out of her bedroom and confronted Scott, he ran out of the house through the sliding glass door near the kitchen, taking the purse and fanny pack with him.

Around midnight on August 9, 1992, Marc Daley had just returned home when he saw that the sliding screen door in the kitchen area was open. The door had been closed when he left earlier that evening. Daley walked through the house and discovered Scott behind the door of a bedroom. Scott said that he did not want to hurt Daley and that he only wanted his money. Daley ran to his neighbor’s house, and Scott fled the scene. When Daley returned to his house, he noticed the sliding glass door in the master bedroom was open. The door had been closed the last time he had seen it. A television had been moved in the bedroom where Daley had seen Scott. A fingerprint obtained from the television matched Scott’s.

Around midnight on August 25, 1992, Emily Pollard was watching television in her living room when she heard a large crash. Pollard saw Scott in her kitchen, screamed, and ran to a neighbor’s house. When she returned to her house the following morning, her purse and a camera were missing; she had last seen both items on the kitchen counter. The sliding glass door that led from the kitchen to the backyard had been smashed.

Around 12:50 a.m. on November 4, 1992, Kenneth Osburn and Jeffrey Cole were in their den watching television when Osburn heard the sliding glass door that led from the dining room to the outside of the house open. Osburn saw Scott standing in the dining room. Scott ordered him and Cole to get down on the floor, and they complied. Scott took Osburn’s wallet and went into the kitchen. He said he was going to take the microwave oven and told Osburn and Cole to “stay put.” Minutes later, police apprehended Scott in the house and found Osburn’s wallet in Scott’s possession and a microwave oven in the backyard.

2. Defense Evidence

For a few weeks in July 1992, Scott lived with his stepsister, Audrey Mickens. Occasionally, Scott stayed out all night. Mickens did not recall whether Scott was home on the morning of July 10, 11, or 12.

In September 1992, Detective Barry Dallas received a report from Cooksey that listed the names of 19 paroled registered sex offenders who had the same genetic markers as the semen that was found on Morris’s sheets. Ten of those individuals were Black. In his police reports, Dallas did not refer to the list of 19 names submitted by Cooksey. He put the list into a folder or case file and forgot about it. Dallas provided the prosecution with the list during trial.

B. Penalty Phase

1. Prosecution Evidence

The prosecution introduced evidence of the following prior unadjudicated offenses involving force or violence, or the threat to use force or violence, within the meaning of section 190.3, factor (b).

On November 4, 1992, during the burglary of Osburn and Cole, Scott kicked Osburn in the ribs, stomped on Cole’s back, and hit Cole with a fireplace poker. After putting the microwave oven outside, Scott returned and stomped on Osburn’s back and hit and kicked Cole. Scott demanded money, and Osburn put his wallet on the coffee table. Osburn and Cole were very afraid and thought they were going to die. Scott threatened to kill Cole and told him that he (Scott) was going to stick Cole with the fireplace poker, which he held over Cole’s head. Scott had the poker in his hands when the police arrived.

In March 1988, Thomas Meyer and Dan King worked and lived at a construction site in Palm Springs. One night, they were awakened in their camper when Scott confronted them through a screen door and demanded money. Meyer threw his jacket to Scott, who remained outside. After finding no money in it, Scott became agitated, banged on the doorsill, and said, “I have a double barreled sawed off shotgun here, and I am going to blow your mother fucking head off if you don’t give me some money now.” King took a gun which he kept under his pillow and fired four shots at Scott. Meyer thought Scott had returned fire from a shotgun. Scott appeared to be injured and was rolling on the ground about 10 feet from the door. He said, “God. I am never going to do this again.” Meyer and King left the camper, and within minutes, the police arrived and arrested Scott.

The prosecution presented victim impact evidence through the testimony of Morris’s nephew, Raymond Abelin. Morris was more like a mother to him than an aunt. Dancing was everything to her, and she enjoyed choreographing and teaching dance. Before moving to Palm Springs, Morris lived in Los Angeles where she organized theatrical shows at venues such as the Wilshire Theatre, Los Angeles Street Scene Festival, and various fairs and parties. Dancing was a family business, and Morris was in charge of the productions. Morris inspired many people, including Abelin, to study and become involved in the arts.

When Abelin learned that Morris had been murdered, he was devastated. Her death became a “horror, living nightmare.” He felt guilty for her murder because he had encouraged her to move to Palm Springs.

Morris had received numerous commendations and awards for her contributions to the arts, including recognition as woman of the year by the wife of Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley. Morris was an active member of the Lebanese-American community, which was outraged by her murder.

2. Defense Evidence

Scott was bom in Jacksonville, Texas. He had eight living siblings. Narlena Black, his mother, divorced his father soon after his birth. Scott’s father lived in California. Scott was close to his stepfather, and the two enjoyed spending time together and playing sports. Scott’s parents loved him and did their best to teach him right from wrong.

Scott was close to his older brother, who was hit by a car and killed when Scott was a high school senior. Scott was not the same after his brother’s death. Scott had a good relationship with his younger brother Terry Roberts. They played several sports together and had occasional disagreements but never any fights. Scott was very protective of his siblings. He joined the military, and family members noticed that after separating from service, he started “running with the wrong type of boys” and engaging in “mischief.”

Criminal justice consultant Anthony Casas reviewed Scott’s prison and incarceration records, and learned that he had been confined in five or six prisons since 1972. Except for an incident during which he used foul language and another in which he used medication that caused him to hear voices, Casas found nothing in Scott’s records to indicate that he had any attitude or behavior problems. Casas opined that if Scott were sentenced to life in prison without possibility of parole, he would not be a threat to other inmates or to correctional personnel.

II. Discussion

A. Pretrial and Jury Selection Issues

1. Challenge for Cause

Scott contends that the trial court erroneously excused Prospective Juror B.C. for cause based on her death penalty views in violation of the Sixth and Fourteenth Amendments to the federal Constitution.

a. Factual and Procedural Background

At the time of jury selection, B.C. was a 71-year-old retired insurance underwriter. When asked in the written questionnaire about her general feelings about the death penalty, B.C. said, “I would not want to be on a case that would require the death penalty.” She attributed her feelings about the death penalty to her religious beliefs and indicated her feelings were not “very strong.” B.C. said she did not feel obligated to accept the view of her religious organization concerning the death penalty and that if the views of that organization were in conflict with the law, she would follow the law. When asked if she would “follow the instruction of the Judge that under our law, you may decide to impose the death penalty only if, in your mind, after weighing and balancing all the evidence in the case, you are persuaded that the aggravating factors substantially outweigh the mitigating factors such that death is warranted,” she responded “yes.”

Question 75 set forth five categories of thought about the death penalty and asked each prospective juror to indicate which group best described his or her views. The five categories were: “Group One [¶] I will always vote for death in every case of murder with special circumstances. I cannot and will not weigh and consider the aggravating and mitigating factors”; “Group Two [¶] I favor the death penalty but will not always vote for death in every case of murder with special circumstances. I can and will weigh and consider the aggravating and mitigating factors”; “Group Three [¶] I neither favor nor oppose the death penalty”; “Group Four [¶] I have doubts about the death penalty, but I would not vote against it in every case”; and “Group Five [¶] I oppose the death penalty. I will never vote for the death of another person.” B.C. placed herself in group four. Question 61 asked, “If a defendant was found guilty of first degree murder and the special circumstance that ‘the murder was committed during the commission of a felony’ was found to be true, would you always vote for Life Without Parole, and reject Death, regardless of the evidence presented at the penalty trial?” B.C. responded “yes.”

During voir dire on the death qualification issues, B.C. said that in the penalty phase, she could consider the evidence presented and weigh the mitigating and aggravating factors in determining the appropriate penalty. The court asked B.C. whether would she vote for death if she felt the appropriate decision was death, and whether she would vote for life if she felt the appropriate decision was life. B.C. answered “Yes” and said she would make an individualized decision.

Defense counsel questioned the prospective jurors, but he did not specifically question B.C. During voir dire by the prosecutor, B.C. said her feeling that she would not want to serve on a death penalty case was not so strong that she would not be able to follow the law. B.C. confirmed that she would weigh aggravating and mitigating factors. When asked whether she would keep an open mind as to penalty, she answered, “Well, I could — I would probably be more toward the other way.” The prosecutor then asked, “Toward life or death?” B.C. replied, “Life, yes. But I’m not saying that I am set.”

The prosecutor then questioned B.C. about her response to question 61, that she would always vote for life if a defendant was found guilty of first degree felony murder, regardless of the evidence presented at the penalty trial. B.C. explained, “Well, I prefer life without.” B.C. said that if this case proceeded to a penalty phase, she would consider all of the evidence and weigh the aggravating and mitigating factors. The prosecutor then asked B.C. whether, if the jury in this case reached a verdict of death and the trial court polled the jurors as to their personal verdict, she could say, “Yes, my verdict is death.” B.C. answered, “I don’t know if I could,” “I really don’t,” and “I’m not sure that I could do that part.” The prosecutor then asked all prospective jurors undergoing voir dire at the same time as B.C., “Is there anybody among the group who could not come into this courtroom, face [defendant] and return a verdict of death?” B.C. responded, “I’m not sure.”

After several prospective jurors were excused by stipulation, the prosecutor challenged B.C. for cause. Defense counsel objected and said, “Well, Your Honor, I think she was close. ... I think she was close, but she never said that she could not listen and make a decision. As a matter of fact, she said that she would be willing to listen, though it would be extremely difficult for her and hard. But she said she could sit and listen and make a decision as to death, even though she would be leaning towards life without the possibility of parole. ... At one point she was kind of wavering back and forth, and it might be very difficult for her, but I don’t think there’s a challenge for cause there based on what I heard.”

The trial court granted the challenge, explaining as follows: “She is one of these jurors that- — it is my understanding in looking at these cases that there are those jurors who — for example, if you asked them whether or not Adolph Hitler — assuming he was the defendant in this case — -whether he would deserve the death penalty, they would say, ‘Yes.’ Then you ask them — and you bring them back to the real world, . . . what they’re really saying is that although they could conceive in an abstract sense of voting for the death penalty, that when you apply to — apply it to the real world, that what they’re saying is that they could not. [¶] In listening to her testimony, and although this is certainly a close call, ... it seems to me that reading between the lines and watching her, her body language, and the way she answered, her reluctance to look up, that what she’s really saying is she couldn’t vote for the death penalty in the real world. [¶] . . . I’m going to sustain the challenge. . . . [¶] And so I’m going to — I must admit to you that it is an extremely close call, but it seems to me that what she was signaling to us is that really she couldn’t vote for the death penalty in the real world if the — if the factors were established by the People pursuant to law.”

b. Discussion

A trial court may excuse a prospective juror for cause upon determining that the juror is “ ‘substantially impaired in his or her ability to impose the death penalty under the state-law framework.’ ” (People v. McKinzie (2012) 54 Cal.4th 1302, 1328 [144 Cal.Rptr.3d 427, 281 P.3d 412]; see Wainwright v. Witt (1985) 469 U.S. 412, 424 [83 L.Ed.2d 841, 105 S.Ct. 844].) “A trial court’s determination concerning juror bias is reviewed for abuse of discretion. [Citation.] ‘[A]ppellate courts recognize that a trial judge who observes and speaks with a prospective juror and hears that person’s responses (noting, among other things, the person’s tone of voice, apparent level of confidence, and demeanor) . . . gleans valuable information that simply does not appear on the record.’ ” (People v. Jones (2012) 54 Cal.4th 1, 41 [140 Cal.Rptr.3d 383, 275 P.3d 496] (Jones)] see Uttecht v. Brown (2007) 551 U.S. 1, 9 [167 L.Ed.2d 1014, 127 S.Ct. 2218] [“Deference to the trial court is appropriate because it is in a position to assess the demeanor of the venire, and of the individuals who compose it, a factor of critical importance in assessing the attitude and qualifications of potential jurors.”].)

As an initial matter, Scott claims that the trial court’s examination of B.C. was inadequate to determine whether her death penalty views would substantially impair her ability to serve as a capital juror. But because Scott did not object or otherwise indicate that the court should have conducted additional voir dire of B.C., he has forfeited this claim. (People v. Foster (2010) 50 Cal.4th 1301, 1324 [117 Cal.Rptr.3d 658, 242 P.3d 105].)

At any rate, substantial evidence supports the trial court’s determination that B.C.’s death penalty views disqualified her from serving as a capital juror. In her questionnaire, B.C. said that she would follow the law instead of her religious views and that she would consider the evidence and weigh the aggravating and mitigating circumstances in accordance with the judge’s instructions. But B.C. also indicated that if a jury convicted a defendant of first degree felony murder, she would always vote for life, regardless of the evidence presented at the penalty trial. B.C. gave similarly conflicting responses during voir dire. She indicated a willingness to remain open on the question of penalty, follow the trial court’s instructions, and weigh and consider all of the evidence. But she also said she was unsure she could state in open court that she voted for death if the jury in this case decided death was the appropriate penalty.

Faced with these conflicting responses, the trial court acknowledged that “it is an extremely close call . . .” but explained that “reading between the lines and watching her, her body language, and the way she answered, her reluctance to look up, what she’s really saying is she couldn’t vote for the death penalty in the real world.” By stating its observations of B.C.’s demeanor, the trial court made clear that it had “ ‘glean[ed] valuable information that simply does not appear on the record.’ ” (Jones, supra, 54 Cal.4th at p. 41.) The trial court’s observations of B.C.’s demeanor, along with B.C.’s written and verbal answers, comprise substantial evidence supporting the conclusion that B.C.’s personal views would substantially impair her ability to serve as a capital juror. We defer to the trial court’s determination and find no abuse of discretion.

2. Batson/Wheeler Motion

Scott, who is African-American, contends that the prosecutor violated his state and federal constitutional rights to equal protection and a jury drawn from a fair cross-section of the community by peremptorily excusing two African-American prospective jurors. (See Batson v. Kentucky (1986) 476 U.S. 79 [90 L.Ed.2d 69, 106 S.Ct. 1712] (Batson); People v. Wheeler (1978) 22 Cal.3d 258 [148 Cal.Rptr. 890, 583 P.2d 748] (Wheeler).) The claim lacks merit.

a. Factual and Procedural Background

The 87 prospective jurors qualified to serve on Scott’s jury identified themselves in their juror questionnaires as follows: four as African-American, 14 as Latino, one as African-American and Latino, 59 as White, and nine either did not indicate any racial or ethnic group or indicated some other group. The prosecutor exercised his seventh peremptory challenge to excuse R.C. and exercised his 10th challenge to excuse H.R. Both are African-American.

Prospective Juror R. C.

R.C. stated in her questionnaire that she was not personally acquainted but had “been in court” with the deputy district attorney assigned to this case when he prosecuted her son. According to the questionnaire, R.C. visited her son in prison “as much as possible,” claimed that her son had had “unpleasant experiences” with law enforcement and this district attorney’s office in particular, and believed that her son was not treated fairly by those agencies.

Prior to voir dire, the defense stipulated to R.C.’s excusal because the assigned deputy district attorney had indeed prosecuted the prospective juror’s son. At the time of her son’s trial, R.C. had claimed to the media “that the prosecution was unwarranted and racially motivated.” The trial court did not accept the stipulation, however, and said it felt obliged to make an inquiry into the prospective juror’s ability to be fair.

When asked in voir dire whether there was anything in her life “that would in any way affect [her] ability to be fair to both sides in this case,” R.C. reiterated that the assigned deputy district attorney had successfully prosecuted her son and sent him to prison a year or two earlier, that she thought her son was not treated fairly by the district attorney’s office in “some parts,” and that she did not know whether the district attorney would want someone like her on the jury. Although she admitted having been very upset at the time of her son’s trial, she asserted that she had “no hard feelings” about the prior prosecution and that she could be fair in this case — despite the fact the same police department (Palm Springs) and the same lead investigator were involved and “some of the situation is somewhat similar.”

Prospective Juror H.R.

H.R. stated in his questionnaire that he would consider all the aggravating and mitigating evidence presented before deciding the question of penalty and could vote for death in an appropriate case. However, in response to question 75, which asked jurors to read five options that described views about imposing the death penalty and to “check the one that best describes” their views, H.R. put a checkmark next to group five, which stated, “I oppose the death penalty. I will never vote for the death of another person.” Despite the instructions, H.R. also put a checkmark next to group four, which stated, “I have doubts about the death penalty, but I would not vote against it in every case,” and next to group three, which stated, “I neither favor nor oppose the death penalty.”

The trial court began voir dire by advising H.R. that membership in group five meant that “not only do you oppose the death penalty,” but “you [could] never vote for the death penalty regardless of the evidence.” When the trial court subsequently asked H.R. whether he could consider the aggravating and mitigating circumstances in a penalty trial and vote for either penalty, H.R. said, “Sure” and “Yes.” H.R. also said that if the jury in this case were to return a death verdict, he could face Scott and affirm that this was his verdict. But when asked by the court to clarify which of the three groups he checked off in question 75 best represented his views about imposing the death penalty, H.R. hesitated and said he wanted to “think about it.” After the court reiterated that “[y]ou understand if you are in group five, you cannot serve; do you understand that?,” H.R. finally replied, “I think group four would be more the way I feel.”

Under questioning by the prosecutor, H.R. claimed he had misread question 75 and that when he looked at it again, he said he had made a mistake. He added that he was still leaning “more toward group 4 than any other groups.” When asked if he could ever imagine a crime or a defendant so terrible as to warrant the death penalty, H.R. replied, “In a sense I guess that’s possible. ... I guess I could” and “I think I can.”

The Motion to Dismiss the Panel

After the jurors were sworn but before the alternate jurors were selected, Scott moved to dismiss the panel, asserting that the prosecutor’s decisions to strike R.C. and H.R. were racially motivated. Defense counsel relied in particular on R.C.’s statements that she could put aside the “situation” with her son and decide the case solely on the evidence, and on H.R.’s statements that he could be a fair and impartial juror and would be able to vote for death in an appropriate case.

The trial court ruled that Scott’s motion appeared to be untimely and therefore forfeited because he had not objected to the strikes until after the jurors had been sworn, but nonetheless went on to address the merits. As to R.C., the court acknowledged that she had said “all the right things” but doubted that “any prosecutor” would have kept her on the jury: “I think that was — that was so obvious a point that I don’t think anyone could.” The court concluded that “no prima facie case could be made” as to R.C.

Turning to H.R., the trial court said it “suspect[ed] there may well be a neutral race [iic] explanation,” but added, “I believe that it could be argued that a — that a prima facie case could be made. You feel that you want to respond, or do you want to rest on the Court’s ruling on the waiver? I’ll leave that to you, sir.” The trial court also asked whether the prosecutor wanted “to say anything more about Miss [C.]” The prosecutor replied, “Well, I don’t want to say anything until I’m required to by the Court,” and inquired whether the court had already ruled there was no prima facie showing of discrimination as to these jurors. The court then clarified its position: “What I said was that in the case of Miss [C.], it was so obviously [sic] there was no basis for [the BatsonlWheeler motion] that I want the record to be abundantly clear on that point. I mean that — that was just completely obvious.” With respect to H.R., the court explained, “I — my sense is based upon his — his answers in the questionnaire to suggest that there are — that there would probably be a legitimate basis. He had substantial reluctance to the death penalty in his questionnaire. He placed himself at one point in category 5 as I recall although he ultimately said he was in category 4, but I don’t want to get into that exercise. [¶] . . . [¶] MR. BEST: Okay. And if you are saying that you have not found a prima facie case, then I will state my reasons as to Mr. [R.] for the record. But I am not agreeing that there has been a prima facie showing. But I will say it out of an abundance of caution to preserve the record, but I am not agreeing, and I want it clear whether or not the Court has made the ruling that there is a prima facie case. [¶] THE COURT: . . . [B]efore the Court were to — to find that — [¶] MR. BEST: There are cases where the court has declined to find a prima facie case and then has solicited the prosecutor’s reasons anyway. If that’s the situation we are in and the record clearly reflects that, then I will provide my reasons for the record. [¶] THE COURT: That would be my position. [¶] MR. BEST: Then I will accept that and do that. As to both jurors or? [¶] THE COURT: No. I mean- — if anyone . . . who reads this transcript thinks that Miss [C.] would be a fair juror to the People, then I would — then I give up making decisions.”

Accepting the invitation to discuss his reasons as to H.R., the prosecutor explained that “the reasons for excusing him were what I considered inconsistent answers on the death penalty. On the initial questionnaire, he marked groups 3, 4 and 5. Five being the group that would never under any circumstances vote for the death penalty. [P] Even under questioning, all he would indicate is he is leaning toward group 4 which is the group that does not favor the death penalty but would not rule it out. Based on that, I did not believe I knew where he stood on the death penalty; and based on that, I excused him.”

The trial court denied the defense motion, saying, “In looking at [People v. Medina (1995) 11 Cal.4th 694 [47 Cal.Rptr.2d 165, 906 P.2d 2]], I read that case, gives some guidance on this point and the Supreme Court confirmed in that case that an exercise of the challenge based upon a reluctance to impose the death penalty is an appropriate basis for the exercise of the challenge. It would seem to me that — I accept that. Those were basically the reasons that I mentioned to you — [¶] . . . [¶] — before we began.”

b. Discussion

Both the state and federal Constitutions prohibit the use of peremptory strikes to remove prospective jurors on the basis of group bias. (Batson, supra, 476 U.S. at p. 89; Wheeler, supra, 22 Cal.3d at pp. 276-277.) The now familiar Batson/Wheeler inquiry consists of three distinct steps. First, the opponent of the strike must make out a prima facie case by showing that the totality of the relevant facts gives rise to an inference of discriminatory purpose in the exercise of peremptory challenges. Second, if the prima facie case has been made, the burden shifts to the proponent of the strike to explain adequately the basis for excusing the juror by offering permissible, nondiscriminatory justifications. Third, if the party has offered a nondiscriminatory reason, the trial court must decide whether the opponent of the strike has proved the ultimate question of purposeful discrimination. (Johnson v. California (2005) 545 U.S. 162, 168 [162 L.Ed.2d 129, 125 S.Ct. 2410] (Johnson).)

At the outset, we find erroneous the trial court’s ruling that Scott’s Batson/Wheeler motion was untimely. The trial court determined that Scott’s motion was untimely because he did not object to the prosecutor’s challenges to R.C. and H.R. until after the 12 jurors were sworn. A Batson/Wheeler motion is timely if it is made before jury impanelment is completed, which does not occur “ ‘until the alternates are selected and sworn.’ ” (People v. McDermott (2002) 28 Cal.4th 946, 970 [123 Cal.Rptr.2d 654, 51 P.3d 874], italics added.) As we explained in McDermott, “discriminatory motive may become sufficiently apparent to establish a prima facie case only during the selection of alternate jurors, and a motion promptly made before the alternates are sworn, and before any remaining unselected prospective jurors are dismissed, is timely not only as to the prospective jurors challenged during the selection of the alternate jurors but also as to those dismissed during selection of the 12 jurors already sworn.” (Id. at p. 969.) Because Scott objected before the alternate jurors were selected and sworn, his Batson! Wheeler motion was timely. We therefore turn to the merits of Scott’s motion.

A prima facie case of racial discrimination in the use of peremptory challenges is established if the totality of the relevant facts “ ‘gives rise to an inference of discriminatory purpose.’ ” (Johnson, supra, 545 U.S. at p. 168.) In this case, the trial court ruled that Scott had not raised an inference of discrimination as to either prospective juror. We review that ruling independently where, as here, the trial predated Johnson and it is not clear from the record whether the trial court analyzed the Batson/Wheeler motion with this low threshold in mind. (People v. Thomas (2012) 53 Cal.4th 771, 794 [137 Cal.Rptr.3d 533, 269 P.3d 1109].)

Although the question at the first stage concerning the existence of a prima facie case depends on consideration of the entire record of voir dire as of the time the motion was made (People v. Lenix (2008) 44 Cal.4th 602, 624 [80 Cal.Rptr.3d 98, 187 P.3d 946]), we have observed that certain types of evidence may prove particularly relevant. (People v. Bonilla (2007) 41 Cal.4th 313, 342 [60 Cal.Rptr.3d 209, 160 P.3d 84] (Bonilla).) Among these are that a party has struck most or all of the members of the identified group from the venire, that a party has used a disproportionate number of strikes against the group, that the party has failed to engage these jurors in more than desultory voir dire, that the defendant is a member of the identified group, and that the victim is a member of the group to which the majority of the remaining jurors belong. (Wheeler, supra, 22 Cal.3d at pp. 280-281.) A court may also consider nondiscriminatory reasons for a peremptory challenge that are apparent from and “clearly established” in the record (People v. Box (2000) 23 Cal.4th 1153, 1189 [99 Cal.Rptr.2d 69, 5 P.3d 130]; see People v. Turner (1994) 8 Cal.4th 137, 168 [32 Cal.Rptr.2d 762, 878 P.2d 521]) and that necessarily dispel any inference of bias. (People v. Taylor (2010) 48 Cal.4th 574, 644 [108 Cal.Rptr.3d 87, 229 P.3d 12]; accord, U.S. v. Stephens (7th Cir. 2005) 421 F.3d 503, 518, 516 [“the examination of ‘apparent’ reasons in the record . . . involves only reasons for the challenges that are objectively evident in the record” such that “there is no longer any suspicion, or inference, of discrimination in those strikes”]; cf. Williams v. Runnels (9th Cir. 2006) 432 F.3d 1102, 1110 [“refutation of the inference requires more than a determination that the record could have supported race-neutral reasons for the prosecutor’s use of his peremptory challenges . . .”].)

Scott points out that the prosecutor struck two of the three African-Americans and three of an unknown number of Latinos who made it into the jury box, that he is African-American, and that the victim was White. He urges us to find a prima facie case of discrimination on those facts alone. Although those facts may be probative on the issue of discriminatory intent (Bonilla, supra, 41 Cal.4th at p. 342), the high court has directed us to consider the totality of the relevant facts in determining whether an inference of discrimination exists. (Johnson, supra, 545 U.S. at p. 168.) Viewed as a whole, the record in this case clearly establishes nondiscriminatory reasons for excusing R.C. and H.R. that dispel any inference of bias.

R.C. was familiar with the deputy district attorney because he had successfully prosecuted R.C.’s son a year or two earlier and had committed her son to prison — with the assistance of the same lead investigator who would be testifying in the current prosecution. Moreover, R.C. had criticized her son’s prosecution as racially motivated, and she admitted having been very upset about it. Like the trial court, we doubt that any prosecutor would have kept R.C. on the jury, despite her assertion that she could be fair and impartial in this case. No inference of purposeful discrimination arose from this strike. (People v. Lancaster (2007) 41 Cal.4th 50, 77-78 [58 Cal.Rptr.3d 608, 158 P.3d 157].)

The record also established compelling reasons to excuse H.R., who in his questionnaire said he was so opposed to the death penalty as to be unwilling to impose it under any circumstances. Although H.R. elsewhere said in his questionnaire that while he was opposed to the death penalty, he would be able to impose it in some circumstances (and that he neither favored nor opposed the death penalty) — and claimed in voir dire that the confusing responses were a “mistake” — he nonetheless struggled in voir dire to explain which category best accorded with his own views, even after being told twice that a complete unwillingness to impose the death penalty would render him ineligible for jury service. Even if the conflicting questionnaire responses and the voir dire on the subject would not have justified a for-cause challenge, a prosecutor would reasonably want to avoid the risk that H.R. actually would, as he stated in the questionnaire, “never vote for the death of another person.” (See People v. Sattiewhite (2014) 59 Cal.4th 446, 470 [174 Cal.Rptr.3d 1, 328 P.3d 1]; People v. Panah (2005) 35 Cal.4th 395, 441 [25 Cal.Rptr.3d 672, 107 P.3d 790].) This risk was sufficient to dispel an inference of discrimination.

c. Clarification of Our Practice in Reviewing Batson/Wheeler Motions

In this case, the trial court determined first that Scott had failed to raise an inference of discrimination in connection with the strikes of R.C. and H.R. It then granted the prosecutor an opportunity to state his reasons for excusing those jurors. After being assured that the trial court had found no prima facie case of discrimination, the prosecutor made a record of his reasons for excusing H.R. The prosecutor did not offer reasons for excusing R.C., presumably because of the trial court’s statement that the reasons for excusing her were so obvious that it would “give up making decisions” if anyone thought she could have been a fair juror. The trial court, as an alternative holding, then credited the prosecutor’s reasons and determined that the excusal of H.R. did not constitute purposeful discrimination.

The United States Supreme Court has not established whether an appellate court in such circumstances should review the trial court’s first-stage ruling that there was no prima facie case of discrimination or, instead, its third-stage ruling that there was no purposeful discrimination. Appellate tribunals therefore have some flexibility in fashioning a workable procedure, so long as the approach complies with the familiar three-step Batson/Wheeler framework. (People v. Mata (2013) 57 Cal.4th 178, 183 [158 Cal.Rptr.3d 655, 302 P.3d 1039]; see Johnson, supra, 545 U.S. at p. 168 [“States do have flexibility in formulating appropriate procedures to comply with Batson”]; Batson, supra, 476 U.S. at p. 99 [“We decline ... to formulate particular procedures to be followed upon a defendant’s timely objection to a prosecutor’s challenges.”]; accord, State v. Jacobs (La. 2001) 803 So.2d 933, 940; People v. Hameed (1996) 88 N.Y.2d 232 [666 N.E.2d 1339, 1341, 644 N.Y.S.2d 466].)

Neither the parties nor Justice Liu, post, disputes that an appellate court properly reviews the first-stage ruling if the trial court has determined that no prima facie case of discrimination exists, then allows or invites the prosecutor to state reasons for excusing the juror, but refrains from ruling on the validity of those reasons. (E.g., People v. Taylor, supra, 48 Cal.4th at pp. 612-614; People v. Hawthorne (2009) 46 Cal.4th 67, 78-79 & fn. 2 [92 Cal.Rptr.3d 330, 205 P.3d 245]; accord, U.S. v. Johnson (7th Cir. 2014) 756 F.3d 532, 536-537; see U.S. v. Valencia-Trujillo (11th Cir. 2009) 573 F.3d 1171, 1184, fn. 8.) What divides them is whether the same procedure applies when the trial court, having determined that no prima facie case was established and having heard the proffered justifications, goes ahead and makes an alternative holding that those reasons were genuine.

We recognize that our jurisprudence on this issue has not always been entirely consistent. (Compare People v. Banks (2014) 59 Cal.4th 1113, 1146 [176 Cal.Rptr.3d 185, 331 P.3d 1206] [in “ ‘such a circumstance,’ ” “ ‘ “we express no opinion on whether defense counsel established a prima facie case of discrimination and instead skip to Batson’s third stage to evaluate the prosecutor’s reasons” ’ ”] with People v. Lopez (2013) 56 Cal.4th 1028, 1049-1050 [157 Cal.Rptr.3d 570, 301 P.3d 1177] [where trial courts choose “ ‘to request and consider a prosecutor’s stated reasons for excusing a prospective juror even when they find no prima facie case of discrimination,’ ” the request does “ ‘ “not convert [this] first-stage Wheeler/Batson case into a third-stage case” ’ ”].) We therefore take this opportunity to clarify our practice.

In formulating an approach to the question before us, we must be mindful of the interests at stake. The Batson/Wheeler framework is designed to enforce the constitutional prohibition on exclusion of persons from jury service on account of their membership in a cognizable group. It is also designed to otherwise preserve the historical privilege of peremptory challenges free of judicial control, which “traditionally have been viewed as one means of assuring the selection of a qualified and unbiased jury.” (Batson, supra, 476 U.S. at p. 91.) A balancing of these competing interests explains why the party exercising a peremptory challenge has the burden to come forward with nondiscriminatory reasons only when the moving party has first made out a prima facie case of discrimination. (J. E. B. v. Alabama ex rel. T. B. (1994) 511 U.S. 127, 145 [128 L.Ed.2d 89, 114 S.Ct. 1419]; accord, Brown v. Dixon (4th Cir. 1989) 891 F.2d 490, 497.) Although mandating further inquiry, even when the opponent of the strike was unable to raise an inference of discrimination from the existing record, might either help confirm the trial court’s first-stage ruling or refute it, we must harmonize the constitutional interest in combating discrimination with the United States Supreme Court’s preservation of the peremptory challenge in Batson. (See Rice v. Collins (2006) 546 U.S. 333, 343 [163 L.Ed.2d 824, 126 S.Ct. 969] (cone. opn. of Breyer, J.).)

Our approach to Batson/Wheeler motions has also been shaped by practical considerations. Even though a peremptory challenge is designed to be used “for any reason, or no reason at all” (Hernandez, supra, 500 U.S. at p. 374 (cone. opn. of O’Connor, J.)) — and a party exercising a strike thus has no obligation to articulate a reason until an inference of discrimination has been raised (People v. Williams (1997) 16 Cal.4th 635, 663-664 [66 Cal.Rptr.2d 573, 941 P.2d 752]) — we have nonetheless repeatedly encouraged trial courts to offer prosecutors the opportunity to state their reasons so as to enable creation of an adequate record for an appellate court, should it disagree with the first-stage ruling, to determine whether any constitutional violation has been established (People v. Howard (2008) 42 Cal.4th 1000, 1020 [71 Cal.Rptr.3d 264, 175 P.3d 13]; Bonilla, supra, 41 Cal.4th at p. 343, fn. 13; accord, U.S. v. Collins (9th Cir. 2009) 551 F.3d 914, 927-928 (cone. opn. of Graber, J.) [“Judicial economy would be well served,” as “would confidence in the fairness of a trial”]; State v. Holloway (1989) 209 Conn. 636 [553 A.2d 166, 172]; Robinson v. U.S. (D.C. 2006) 890 A.2d 674, 683 [“such voluntary proffers should be encouraged”]; State v. Sledd (1992) 250 Kan. 15 [825 P.2d 114, 119]; Browner v. State (Miss. 2004) 872 So.2d 1, 10-11 [such a practice “would allay the difficulties caused by lost or misplaced documentation and faded memories,” and, if the reviewing court determines a prima facie case was made, “this procedure gives the Court a complete record for reviewing the issue of pretext”]). After all, when a trial court erroneously fails to discern an inference of discrimination and terminates the inquiry at that point, an appellate court is generally required to order a remand to allow the parties and the trial court to continue the three-step Batson/Wheeler inquiry. (See, e.g., People v. Johnson (2006) 38 Cal.4th 1096, 1103-1104 [45 Cal.Rptr.3d 1, 136 P.3d 804].) An investigation into the prosecutor’s motives many years after the fact, when memories have faded and the parties’ written notes can no longer be found, is an inferior substitute for a contemporaneous record of the prosecutor’s justification and the defendant’s response.

Yet prosecutors may be reluctant to state their reasons for the record if doing so would jeopardize or nullify a ruling in their favor that the defense failed to raise an inference of discrimination. (Robinson v. U.S., supra, 890 A.2d 674 at p. 683 [“to treat the prosecution’s proffer as a waiver by the government of the trial court’s ruling in its favor” would “deter prosecutors from making such proffers”].) Indeed, this case provides solid proof that Robinson’s concerns were not mere speculation. The prosecutor here declared unequivocally, “I don’t want to say anything until I’m required to by the Court” and continued to resist offering any statement of reasons until he was satisfied the record “clearly reflected]” the trial court’s finding that Scott had failed to present a prima facie case of discrimination. (See People v. Howard, supra, 42 Cal.4th at p. 1020 [“emphasizing]” that when a trial court has concluded “that a prima facie showing has not been made, the request” for a statement of reasons “does not convert a first-stage Wheeler/Batson case into a third-stage case”].)

Our appellate procedure, then, should seek to advance several objectives. We must ensure that the discriminatory use of peremptory challenges is discovered and remedied, that the right to unexplained peremptory challenges is otherwise preserved, and that the parties are not discouraged from creating a record that is sufficient for resolution of the Batson/Wheeler claim on appeal. Our rule should also be clear, predictable, and easy to apply. We therefore consider closely the operation of the approaches proposed by the Attorney General and by Scott and Justice Liu.

If (as Scott and Justice Liu, post, propose) an appellate court should proceed directly to the third stage whenever the trial court has determined both that no prima facie case of discrimination existed and that no purposeful discrimination occurred, then the trial court may be discouraged from ever making the threshold determination whether a prima facie case exists. (See Serr & Maney, Racism, Peremptory Challenges, and the Democratic Jury: The Jurisprudence of a Delicate Balance (1988) 79 J. Crim. L. & Criminology 1, 41.) Even when the trial court addresses the first-stage inquiry, prosecutors will not want to jeopardize the favorable ruling by placing their reasons on the record. (Robinson v. U.S., supra, 890 A.2d at p. 683.) A remand will thus be needed to create that record, years after the trial, whenever an appellate court disagrees with the trial court’s first-stage ruling. And even when the prosecutor has offered reasons, Scott’s rule will prove uncertain of application where, as here, the parties disagree as to whether the trial court actually made a ruling on the ultimate issue of purposeful discrimination. (Cf. People v. Taylor, supra, 48 Cal.4th at pp. 613-614.)

By contrast, if (as the Attorney General proposes) an appellate court can review the first-stage ruling when, as here, the trial court has made alternative rulings at both the first and third stages, then the trial court has no incentive to skip over the first-stage inquiry. Likewise, the prosecutor has no incentive to withhold his or her reasons for the peremptory challenge. In addition, the Attorney General’s rule is simple and predictable: when the trial court finds there is no prima facie case of discrimination before the proponent of the strike has been asked for or has volunteered a statement of reasons, then the appellate court should begin its review with the first-stage ruling.

The approaches proposed by Scott and the Attorney General each rely on the same three-step Batson/Wheeler framework and thus each is equally sensitive to the possibility of discrimination. Scott, however, contends the approaches do not equally remedy unlawful discrimination and posits a scenario in which a trial court correctly finds no prima facie case of discrimination, the prosecutor then offers a discriminatory reason, but the trial court nonetheless rejects the defendant’s Batson/Wheeler objection. He contends that an appellate court’s focus on the first-stage ruling would “insulate” the discriminatory reason from scrutiny in that instance.

But the prospect that a strike motivated by unlawful bias could evade full review arises any time a trial court terminates the Batson/Wheeler inquiry at the first stage, and is a legacy of the Batson framework itself. This troubling scenario could also arise whenever the prosecutor chooses not to place his or her justifications for the strike on the record — -a result that the approach endorsed by Scott and Justice Liu would actively encourage. Even when — as Justice Liu hypothesizes — comparative analysis could demonstrate that the prosecutor’s stated reasons may have been pretextual, the prosecutor’s reasons would nonetheless be insulated from appellate review as long as the trial court had not ruled on the sincerity of the proffered reasons. Indeed, under the approach proposed by Scott, a facially discriminatory reason that is placed on the record would be insulated from review as long as the trial court refrained from actually deciding the ultimate issue of discrimination. Scott’s hypothetical scenario, therefore, does not afford a basis for choosing one approach over the other. We should, however, consider more closely the role a prosecutor’s discriminatory reason may play in an appellate court’s review of a finding that no prima facie case existed.

As the parties have acknowledged, a reviewing court may not rely on a prosecutor’s statement of reasons to support a trial court’s finding that the defendant failed to make out a prima facie case of discrimination. Although a court reviewing a first-stage ruling that no inference of discrimination exists “may consider apparent reasons for the challenges discernible on the record” as part of its “consideration of ‘all relevant circumstances’ ” (U.S. v. Stephens, supra, 421 F.3d at pp. 515-516), the fact that the prosecutor volunteered one or more nondiscriminatory reasons for excusing the juror is of no relevance at the first stage. Because an inference of discrimination rises or falls based on the circumstances in the record, “[t]o say ‘the prosecutor gave a reason, therefore there is no prima facie case’ is to scramble the analysis in a way that potentially eliminates the need to evaluate the prosecutor’s honesty.” (Hooper v. Ryan (7th Cir. 2013) 729 F.3d 782, 787; see Johnson, supra, 545 U.S. at p. 171 [“ ‘It is not until the third step that the persuasiveness of the justification becomes relevant. . . .’ ”].)

The legal calculus is different when the reason offered by the prosecutor is not used by the reviewing court to defeat a prima facie case of discrimination, but to bolster it. Both Batson and Wheeler emphasized that the purposeful exclusion of identifiable groups from participation on juries undermines public respect for our criminal justice system. (Batson, supra, 476 U.S. at p. 99; Wheeler, supra, 22 Cal.3d at p. 270.) When discriminatory intent is “ ‘inherent’ ” in the explanation offered by the prosecutor (Purkett v. Elem (1995) 514 U.S. 765, 768 [131 L.Ed.2d 834, 115 S.Ct. 1769]), the public’s confidence in the rule of law suffers, regardless of whether the defendant was able to make out a prima facie case of discrimination. In these circumstances, “justice must satisfy the appearance of justice.” (Offutt v. United States (1954) 348 U.S. 11, 14 [99 L.Ed. 11, 75 S.Ct. 11].) Reviewing courts, therefore, should not blind themselves to the record in the “rare” circumstance that a prosecutor volunteers a justification that is discriminatory on its face. (Kesser v. Cambra (9th Cir. 2006) 465 F.3d 351, 373 (cone. opn. of Wardlaw, J.).) A proffered justification that is facially discriminatory must be weighed with the totality of the relevant facts to determine whether they give rise to an inference of discriminatory purpose and thus compel analysis of the subsequent steps in the Batson/Wheeler framework.

In sum, where (1) the trial court has determined that no prima facie case of discrimination exists, (2) the trial court allows or invites the prosecutor to state his or her reasons for excusing the juror for the record, (3) the prosecutor provides nondiscriminatory reasons, and (4) the trial court determines that the prosecutor’s nondiscriminatory reasons are genuine, an appellate court should begin its analysis of the trial court’s denial of the Batson/Wheeler motion with a review of the first-stage ruling. (People v. Lopez, supra, 56 Cal.4th at pp. 1047-1050; People v. Clark (2011) 52 Cal.4th 856, 904-908 [131 Cal.Rptr.3d 225, 261 P.3d 243]; People v. Howard, supra, 42 Cal.4th at pp. 1017-1019; People v. Guerra (2006) 37 Cal.4th 1067, 1101-1103 [40 Cal.Rptr.3d 118, 129 P.3d 321] (Guerra); People v. Boyette (2002) 29 Cal.4th 381, 421-423 [127 Cal.Rptr.2d 544, 58 P.3d 391]; People v. Farnam (2002) 28 Cal.4th 107, 135-139 [121 Cal.Rptr.2d 106, 47 P.3d 988]; People v. Mayfield, supra, 14 Cal.4th at pp. 722-723; People v. Turner, supra, 8 Cal.4th at pp. 165-171; accord, U.S. v. Ervin (6th Cir. 2008) 266 Fed. Appx. 428, 432-433; Sorto v. Herbert (2d Cir. 2007) 497 F.3d 163, 175, fn. 9; State v. Sledd, supra, 825 P.2d at p. 119 [“it is the better practice to have the State respond, and then for the court to make a determination on whether the reasons are racially neutral,” which “would eliminate remands for such a determination if the trial court is held to have erred in holding the defendant had failed to make the prima facie showing”]; State v. Joe (La.Ct.App. 1996) 678 So.2d 586, 591 [“this is undoubtedly the better practice”]; Brawner v. State, supra, 872 So.2d at pp. 9-11; People v. Bruton (N.Y.App.Div. 2002) 290 A.D.2d 231 [735 N.Y.S.2d 759].) If the appellate court agrees with the trial court’s first-stage ruling, the claim is resolved. If the appellate court disagrees, it can proceed directly to review of the third-stage ruling, aided by a full record of reasons and the trial court’s evaluation of their plausibility.

In the circumstance where (1) the trial court has determined that no prima facie case of discrimination exists, (2) the trial court allows or invites the prosecutor to state his or her reasons for excusing the juror on the record, (3) the prosecutor provides a reason that is discriminatory on its face, and (4) the trial court nonetheless finds no purposeful discrimination, the appellate court should likewise begin its analysis of the trial court’s denial of the Batson/Wheeler motion with a review of the first-stage ruling. In that (likely rare) situation, though, the relevant circumstances, including the facially discriminatory justification advanced by the prosecutor, would almost certainly raise an inference of discrimination and therefore trigger review of the next step of the Batson/Wheeler analysis.

Our case law recognizes an additional wrinkle when the appeal involves multiple Batson/Wheeler challenges. Where the appellate court is already evaluating the sincerity of the proffered reason for excusing one juror as part of its review of all the evidence as it bears on the question whether the excusal of another juror constituted unlawful discrimination (see Miller-El v. Dretke (2005) 545 U.S. 231, 252 [162 L.Ed.2d 196, 125 S.Ct. 2317]; People v. Lenix, supra, 44 Cal.4th at p. 616), the appellate court may likewise begin its review of the denial of the Batson/Wheeler motion as to the first juror by evaluating the sincerity of the proffered reason. In People v. Riccardi (2012) 54 Cal.4th 758 [144 Cal.Rptr.3d 84, 281 P.3d 1], for example, the trial court denied the defendant’s first, second, and fourth Batson/Wheeler motions after hearing the prosecutor’s reasons and without making any express findings as to the existence of a prima facie showing of discrimination. (Riccardi, at pp. 784-786.) Review of those rulings necessarily began with the third stage. (See People v. Jurado (2006) 38 Cal.4th 72, 104 [41 Cal.Rptr.3d 319, 131 P.3d 400] [“By asking the prosecutor to explain the peremptory challenges, the trial court here implicitly found that defendant had made a prima facie showing . . . .”].) Only as to the third motion did the trial court deny it without first hearing from the prosecutor, although the prosecutor did eventually supply a reason for excusing that juror in connection with the last Batson/Wheeler motion (and the trial court “appeared implicitly to agree with the prosecutor’s reasons”). (Riccardi, supra, at p. 786.) Because our asse