A jury found the defendant guilty of a felony violation of Vehicle Code section 10851, subd. (a) (unlawfully taking a vehicle). However, the Court of Appeal found that insufficient evidence supported the jury’s finding that the vehicle was worth $950. Thus, the Court concluded the conviction must be reduced to a misdemeanor.
A154378
- June 20, 2019
- Division: One
- Attorney: Mark Johnson
- Categories: Criminal, Sufficiency of the Evidence
A153480
- June 19, 2019
- Division: One
- Attorney: Cara Devito
- Categories: Criminal, Prosecutorial, Juror, and Judicial Misconduct
The Court of Appeal concluded that the trial court abused its discretion in dismissing a juror. The trial court found the dismissed juror had prejudged the case based on other jurors expressing their own opinion that he had done so; however, the Court of Appeal found that the evidence showed the dismissed juror actually engaged in extensive discussions and debate with the other jurors, but continued to adhere to his own view of the evidence and application of the facts to the law. The Court further found that the juror did not rely on evidence outside the record because, while he initially commented on something he read before trial, he retracted that comment after other jurors challenged him, and the jury did not discuss the issue again.
A155556
- June 3, 2019
- Attorney: Alexis Collentine
- Categories: Dependency, General
The Court of Appeal determined that the juvenile court abused its discretion when it ordered mother and foster mother to share educational rights over the child. The Court found that the juvenile court used an incorrect legal standard as it did not consider whether limiting the educational rights of mother was necessary to protect the child.
A152557
- May 17, 2019
- Division: Two
- Attorney: Peter Goldscheider
- Categories: Criminal, Evidentiary
In a case where the defendant was found guilty of receiving a large capacity magazine and possession of a firearm by a felon, after police found a firearm in a car in which the defendant was the front seat passenger, the trial court committed prejudicial error by: (1) excluding a hearsay declaration against penal interest made by the driver of the car that the gun was his, and (2) admitting evidence of a prior incident in which the defendant was found with firearms in his car, on the basis that it proved defendant’s knowledge.
A154589
- April 30, 2019
- Attorney: Paul Swiller
- Categories: Dependency, ICWA
In an appeal from the termination of parental rights, mother argued that an adequate inquiry under the ICWA was not made. The Court of Appeal agreed, finding that the juvenile court did not satisfy its initial duty of inquiry for father. Mother also filed a CCP section 909 motion requesting that the Court take evidence on appeal regarding her Indian heritage. The Court of Appeal did not grant the section 909 motion but stated that the offer of proof was sufficient for a limited remand to obtain further information from mother and father and to give notice to the pertinent tribes if necessary.
A153721
- April 29, 2019
- Division: Four
- Attorney: Richard Braucher
- Categories: Criminal, General, Sentencing
The Court of Appeal invalidated a CDCR regulation, which effectively precluded Proposition 57 early parole consideration for inmates serving strike sentences for non-violent offenses based on their prison disciplinary records. The Court found that the screening process was at odds with the clear language of the constitutional amendment.
A154780
- April 26, 2019
- Division: One
- Attorney: Linda Harvie
- Categories: Criminal, Delinquency, Probation, Parole, PRCS, and Mandatory Supervision
Electronic search condition, which was imposed on the minor to prevent associations with co-perpetrators or coordinate other criminal activities, was overbroad because it did not limit the types of data that could be searched. The Court modified the condition to specify which media of communications could be searched (i.e., those where evidence of criminality or probation violations may be found).
A155129
- April 26, 2019
- Attorney: Elizabeth Klippi
- Categories: Dependency, ICWA
Father raised ICWA errors in an appeal from the termination of parental rights. The Court found the failure of the Department to follow up with the paternal grandmother and/or other relatives to ensure that all necessary information was included in the ICWA notices was not harmless error. The order terminating parental rights was conditionally reversed and the case remanded to the juvenile court.
A154969
- April 25, 2019
- Division: Five
- Attorney: Stephanie Clarke
- Categories: Credits, Criminal, Delinquency
The trial court failed to calculate custody credits when setting the minor’s maximum period of confinement.
A153863
- April 19, 2019
- Division: Two
- Attorney: Matthew Watts
- Categories: Criminal, Delinquency, Probation, Parole, PRCS, and Mandatory Supervision
The probation condition prohibiting appellant from leaving Contra Costa County without the permission of her probation officer, unless she is accompanied by her mother, was modified because it was unreasonable under Lent.