First degree murder conviction upheld where the defendant was both the actual and proximate cause of the victim’s death. The victim’s death was caused by the wounds from defendant’s attack, despite the victim’s preexisting conditions which would have caused death in three to four years, and despite that the victim was temporarily in a stable condition before dying a month after the attack.

Additionally, the prosecution’s emphasis in closing arguments on the “intent to kill” being a determinative factor for first degree murder, as opposed to second degree, was not prosecutorial error where the prosecutor was describing the purpose of defendant’s actions and gave correct examples.

The full opinion is available on the court’s website here: https://www4.courts.ca.gov/opinions/documents/B338531.PDF