State of Arizona, Appellee v. Manuel Ovante, Jr., Appellant

Summary

The court affirmed Ovante’s convictions and sentences, holding that his guilty pleas were reviewable on direct appeal and supported by an adequate factual basis for premeditated murder. It rejected his constitutional challenge to prosecutorial discretion in seeking death, found no fundamental error in the prosecutor’s arguments or jury instructions, and upheld the death sentence under abuse-of-discretion review. The court corrected the sentencing minute entry to conform to the oral pronouncement.