People v. Mirenda

In People v. Mirenda (2009) 174 Cal.App.4th 1313, the delay was 25 years, and the defendant showed prejudice, e.g., death of the sole independent witness. (Id. at pp. 1331-1332.) The appellate court upheld the trial court's determinations that delay in prosecution was justified until 1982, when the California authorities found the defendant in Pennsylvania, but the delay in prosecution between 1982 and 2007 was not justified under the circumstances of the case. (Ibid.) The circumstances included an admission by the prosecutor that nothing was done, and the prosecution not only declined to extradite the defendant but also changed the arrest warrant to "California only" thereby preventing execution of the warrant outside of the state. (Id. at p. 1333.)