BENCH NOTES

Instructional Duty

The court has no sua sponte duty to give an instruction on unjoined co- participants; however, it must be given on request. (See People v. Sanders (1990) 221 Cal.App.3d 350, 359 [271 Cal.Rptr. 534].)

If other alleged participants in the crime are testifying, this instruction should not be given or the bracketed portion should be given exempting the testimony of those witnesses. (People v. Carrera (1989) 49 Cal.3d 291, 312 [261 Cal.Rptr. 348, 777 P.2d 121]; People v. Sully (1991) 53 Cal.3d 1195, 1218 [283 Cal.Rptr. 144, 812 P.2d 163]; People v. Williams (1997) 16 Cal.4th 153, 226–227 [66 Cal.Rptr.2d 123, 940 P.2d 710].) It is not error to give the first paragraph of this instruction if a reasonable juror would understand from all the instructions that evidence of criminal activity by a witness not being prosecuted in the current trial should be considered in assessing the witness’s credibility. (People v. Fonseca (2003) 105 Cal.App.4th 543, 549–550 [129 Cal.Rptr.2d 513].)

AUTHORITY

• Instructional Requirements. People v. Farmer (1989) 47 Cal.3d 888, 918–919 [254 Cal.Rptr. 508, 765 P.2d 940], disapproved on other grounds in People v. Waidla (2000) 22 Cal.4th 690, 724, fn. 6 [94 Cal.Rptr.2d 396, 996 P.2d 46]; People v. Sanders (1990) 221 Cal.App.3d 350, 359 [271 Cal.Rptr. 534].

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