People v. Granados CA2/2

CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedJanuary 27, 2016
DocketB257627
StatusUnpublished

This text of People v. Granados CA2/2 (People v. Granados CA2/2) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People v. Granados CA2/2, (Cal. Ct. App. 2016).

Opinion

Filed 1/27/16 P. v. Granados CA2/2 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 8.1115(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

SECOND APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION TWO

THE PEOPLE, B257627

Plaintiff and Respondent, (Los Angeles County Super. Ct. No. BA398784) v.

ARMANDO GRANADOS,

Defendant and Appellant.

APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County. Gail Ruderman Feuer, Judge. Affirmed.

James M. Crawford, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant.

Kamala D. Harris, Attorney General, Gerald A. Engler, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Lance E. Winters, Assistant Attorney General, Paul M. Roadarmel, Jr., and David A. Voet, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent.

_______________________ In an information filed by the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, defendant and appellant Armando Granados was charged with three counts of attempted premeditated murder (counts 1-3; Pen. Code, §§ 664/187, subd. (a)),1 and shooting into an inhabited dwelling (count 4; § 246). It was alleged that appellant committed those offenses for gang purposes within the meaning of section 186.22, subdivision (b)(1)(C). For count 1, it was further alleged that a principal personally used, intentionally discharged, and proximately caused great bodily injury and death with a firearm. For counts 2 and 3, it was further alleged that a principal personally used and intentionally discharged a firearm during those offenses. (§ 12022.53, subds. (b)-(e).) Appellant pleaded not guilty and denied the allegations. Trial was by jury. The jury found appellant guilty as charged, but it found the firearm allegations for counts 2 and 3 were not true. The trial court denied probation and sentenced appellant to state prison for an aggregate term of 62 years to life. He was ordered to pay various fines and fees and was awarded presentence custody credit. Appellant timely filed a notice of appeal. On appeal, he raises five arguments: (1) He asks that we review the sealed Pitchess2 records for error; (2) The trial court erred in instructing the jury on a kill zone theory of attempted murder on counts 2 and 3; (3) The trial court erred in denying him a reasonable continuance of his sentencing hearing to allow him to retain different counsel; (4) The trial court abused its discretion in imposing consecutive sentences on the three attempted murder counts; and (5) The trial court erred in imposing a concurrent term on count 4 as it should have been stayed under section 654. We affirm.

1 All further statutory references are to the Penal Code unless otherwise indicated.

2 Pitchess v. Superior Court (1974) 11 Cal.3d 531 (Pitchess).

2 FACTUAL BACKGROUND I. Prosecution Evidence A. Gang Tagging Prior to the Shooting On June 2, 2012, Los Angeles Police Officer David Ramirez discovered evidence that appellant had “tagged” a wall with spray paint at a mark located on South Avenue 18. Officer Ramirez drove to appellant’s house and looked inside a blue Toyota belonging to Vanessa Tapia (Tapia), appellant’s girlfriend. Tapia’s car contained items linking it to the tagging. According to Mary Neves (Neves), appellant’s mother, appellant is a member of the 18th Street criminal street gang. In early June 2012, Neves lived on Avenue 19, inside the territory claimed by the “Clover” gang. While appellant lived at a different location on Dudley Drive, he occasionally stayed with Neves “when he had problems” with his girlfriend. That month, Neves’s home was tagged with graffiti displaying the words “East Side Clover” and two “monikers.” She may have told police that she felt that she was being singled out because of her son. Neves “just felt like [she] was in the middle of [two] individuals.” On June 13, 2012, at around 8:00 p.m., Neves tried to contact appellant by cell phone because she wanted to be taken to the hospital. She was unable to reach him, so she stayed home. B. The Shooting On June 13, 2012, Frank Vaca, Sr. (Vaca), lived with his wife, three sons, and daughter at a house located near the intersection of Mozart Street and Workman. The house has a raised porch in front. At around 8:00 p.m., Vaca and his brother, Jesus, and his son, Salvador, were sitting near the stairs leading up to the porch. They discussed having a Father’s Day party for Vaca’s father. The rest of Vaca’s family was inside the residence. Suddenly, Salvador tried to warn his father that there was someone in front of the house holding a gun. At trial, Vaca testified that he did not turn in time to see the gunman, but he recalled hearing two or three gunshots, being struck in the back, falling

3 down, and losing feeling in his legs. He also remembered hearing someone yell, “where are [you] from?” He could not remember if he described the shooter for the police. Vaca was treated by paramedics and taken to the hospital. Along the way, Vaca told Los Angeles Police Officer Jorge Talledo that he saw a man get out of a blue car with a gun. When Vaca tried to run away, he was shot and fell down on his porch. Salvador estimated that when the shooting occurred, he was three feet away from Vaca and five feet away from Jesus. Jesus described where the three men were on the porch when the shooting occurred. Jesus was sitting on a couch when he noticed appellant’s blue car stop in front of Vaca’s house on the closer side of the street. The shooter got out of the car from the passenger side, walked toward the porch, and said, “‘Where you mother fuckers from?’” Then, the shooter fired three shots using a small shiny handgun. The shooter appeared to be Mexican-American, in his twenties, and five to five-and-a-half feet tall. Jesus saw appellant in the car’s back seat, but he could not see the driver. He saw another unidentified person in the car during the shooting. The shooter returned to the car, and the car headed away. Salvador ran to the street, where he was able to see the car, a blue Toyota, and obtain a partial license plate number. He saw four people inside the vehicle. Appellant was sitting in the back seat behind the driver. Salvador retrieved his car keys. By the time Salvador reached his car, the blue Toyota had returned to the area. Salvador followed it. Along the way, he called 911. Eventually, the police began pursuing appellant, so Salvador backed off and drove at a distance. C. Jesus and Salvador Identify Appellant Later that night, Jesus made a field identification of appellant. Jesus believed that appellant was a passenger during the shooting. Salvador identified the Toyota and appellant as a passenger. D. Investigation Los Angeles Police Officer Juan Cobian was assigned to a gang enforcement detail. On June 13, 2012, at around 8:12 p.m., he went to the scene of the shooting,

4 where he saw Vaca on his porch being treated by paramedics. When Officer Cobian learned the description and license plate number for the vehicle used in the shooting, he recalled stopping appellant in that vehicle during April 2012. Officer Cobian knew that the car belonged to Tapia. Officer Cobian provided this information, as well as appellant’s address, to other officers investigating the shooting. Los Angeles Police Officer Geraldine Ruiz and her partner, Officer Edward Castro, were on patrol when the shooting occurred. Officer Ruiz was driving when she saw appellant traveling on Griffin Avenue in the vehicle used during the shooting. Appellant looked “surprised” when he passed her vehicle and quickly made a right turn. She followed the Toyota and checked the license plate number.

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People v. Granados CA2/2, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-granados-ca22-calctapp-2016.