Walker v. Superior Court

47 Cal.3d 112, 763 P.2d 852 (1988)

Study Aids
Case Briefs Overview
Casebooks
Case Briefs
W
From our private database of 46,300+ case briefs, written and edited by humans—never with AI.

Walker v. Superior Court

California Supreme Court
47 Cal.3d 112, 763 P.2d 852 (1988)

CS
Play video

Facts

Laurie Walker was a member of a church that espoused treating illnesses with prayer rather than medical care. Walker’s four-year-old daughter, Shauntay, fell ill with flu-like symptoms and a stiff neck. Walker refused to seek any medical care for her child, and instead attempted to treat Shauntay with prayer. Shauntay’s condition deteriorated as she lost weight, became disoriented, and had difficulty breathing, and seventeen days after falling ill she died. Walker was charged with involuntary manslaughter and felony child endangerment. Walker contended that her actions were legally insufficient to constitute criminal culpability for involuntary manslaughter, and that her actions were constitutionally protected as a free exercise of religion, but her motion to dismiss the charges were denied. Walker filed a petition to the court of appeal for a writ of prohibition and a stay, which were summarily denied. The Supreme Court of California granted Walker’s petition for review, and then transferred the matter back to the court of appeal. Upon further briefing and oral arguments, the court of appeal again denied Walker’s petition. The Supreme Court of California then granted Walker’s second petition for review.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Mosk, J.)

What to do next…

  1. Unlock this case brief with a free (no-commitment) trial membership of Quimbee.

    You’ll be in good company: Quimbee is one of the most widely used and trusted sites for law students, serving more than 807,000 law students since 2011. Some law schools—such as Yale, Berkeley, and Northwestern—even subscribe directly to Quimbee for all their law students.

    Unlock this case briefRead our student testimonials

  2. Learn more about Quimbee’s unique (and proven) approach to achieving great grades at law school.

    Quimbee is a company hell-bent on one thing: helping you get an “A” in every course you take in law school, so you can graduate at the top of your class and get a high-paying law job. We’re not just a study aid for law students; we’re the study aid for law students.

    Learn about our approachRead more about Quimbee

Here's why 807,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:

  • Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,300 briefs, keyed to 988 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
  • The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
  • Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
  • Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership
Here's why 807,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
  • Reliable - written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students
  • The right length and amount of information - includes the facts, issue, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents
  • Access in your class - works on your mobile and tablet
  • 46,300 briefs - keyed to 988 casebooks
  • Uniform format for every case brief
  • Written in plain English - not in legalese and not just repeating the court's language
  • Massive library of related video lessons - and practice questions
  • Top-notch customer support

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership

Casebooks

Criminal Law
Family Law

Key Terms