People v. Lopez CA2/1

CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedApril 28, 2023
DocketB314158
StatusUnpublished

This text of People v. Lopez CA2/1 (People v. Lopez CA2/1) 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. Lopez CA2/1, (Cal. Ct. App. 2023).

Opinion

Filed 4/28/23 P. v. Lopez CA2/1 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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 ONE

THE PEOPLE, B314158

Plaintiff and Respondent, (Los Angeles County Super. Ct. No. BA480221) v.

DAVID LOPEZ,

Defendant and Appellant.

APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County, Renee Korn, Judge. Affirmed as modified. Gary V. Crooks, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant. Rob Bonta, Attorney General, Lance E. Winters, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Susan Sullivan Pithey, Assistant Attorney General, Scott A. Taryle and David A. Voet, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent. __________________________________ David Lopez appeals from a judgment entered after a jury found him guilty of two counts of criminal threats with personal use of a deadly or dangerous weapon (a knife) and three counts of assault with a deadly weapon (the knife). After Lopez admitted he had a prior strike conviction, the trial court sentenced him to six years in prison. He raises numerous contentions on appeal, including (1) the prosecution failed to prove he did not act in self- defense, (2) the court gave the jury “misleading” and “confusing” instructions on self-defense and the weapon enhancement, (3) the court erred in answering a question from the jury, and (4) the court erred in imposing a restitution fine and assessments without considering his ability to pay. For the reasons explained below, we affirm the judgment, as modified to correct clerical errors regarding assessments the trial court imposed. BACKGROUND I. Evidence of the Facts and Circumstances of the Crimes as Presented at Trial At night, on August 7, 2019, Paula Farfan, her friend Luzangela Zelaya, Zelaya’s boyfriend Jeffrey Hernandez, and Hernandez’s friend Pepe went to a bar.1 They drank alcohol there and left after around an hour and a half. They walked to the parking lot where Zelaya’s car was parked, with Hernandez and Pepe each holding a skateboard. Defendant Lopez and his friend (who was not identified at trial) were in a smoking area outside the bar that was separated from the parking lot by

1 Farfan, Zelaya, and Hernandez testified at trial for the prosecution. The defense did not present any witnesses. The identity of Hernandez’s friend was not established at trial. Zelaya testified that the friend used the nickname Pepe, so we will refer to him by that name in this opinion.

2 fencing with a gate. An interaction and altercation between the two groups was captured on surveillance video from the bar that the prosecution played for the jury during the testimony of Farfan, Zelaya and Hernandez. We have reviewed the surveillance video. According to the witnesses’ testimony, Zelaya walked up to the fence and asked defendant Lopez and his friend for a cigarette. Hernandez also asked someone behind the fence about a vehicle that was blocking Zelaya’s car from exiting the parking lot. Hernandez walked away, toward Zelaya’s car. Farfan walked over to the fence to see what Zelaya was doing. Farfan and Lopez introduced themselves to each other while Zelaya talked to Lopez’s friend. Lopez asked Farfan for her telephone number, which she declined to provide, telling him she would give him contact information for her Instagram account instead. According to Farfan, Lopez became angry and made a “snap comment” back to her, and she walked away. She went to Zelaya’s car and put her purse inside. Meanwhile, either Lopez or his friend offered Zelaya the cigarette he was smoking and joked that he had the herpes virus. This upset Zelaya and she returned the cigarette. In response, Lopez or his friend called Zelaya a “bitch.”2 Zelaya walked over to her car where Farfan was waiting.

2According to Zelaya’s trial testimony, this exchange regarding the cigarette, including use of the derogatory term, was between her and Lopez. Hernandez also testified at trial that it was Lopez who referred to Zelaya by the derogatory term. According to Farfan’s trial testimony and Zelaya’s preliminary hearing testimony (which the defense used to impeach Zelaya), the exchange regarding the cigarette, including use of the derogatory term, was between Zelaya and Lopez’s friend. This

3 Upon overhearing this exchange, Hernandez approached Lopez and his friend (from the other side of the fence) and told them not to be disrespectful and not to call Zelaya a “bitch.” Then, Hernandez walked away, toward Zelaya’s car. Lopez and his friend came around the fence into the parking lot and approached Hernandez and Pepe. It appeared to Hernandez that Lopez and his friend were mad and wanted to fight with Hernandez. Lopez or his friend grabbed the skateboards away from Hernandez and Pepe, and words were exchanged between the two groups of men. Pepe took the skateboards back. Lopez grabbed Hernandez, and Hernandez “pushed him away warning him, like, dude, don’t. Just stop. Leave. I’ll really do something.” Hernandez stated at trial that he “held [him]self” back because Lopez was “not worth it.” He did not want to engage in a physical altercation because he was on probation (for a robbery), and he would get in trouble if he fought.3 Hernandez retrieved his skateboard (presumably from Pepe). He stated that he did not use it as a weapon. Zelaya pushed one of the men (Lopez or his friend) away from Hernandez because she did not want Hernandez to fight.4 Lopez pulled out a knife, held it down at his side, and moved within an inch of Hernandez. Hernandez

inconsistency is not material to our resolution of the issues on appeal. 3Between the time of the incident and trial, Hernandez was convicted for a domestic violence incident with Zelaya. They were no longer dating at the time of trial and a protective order prohibited them from having contact with each other. 4 During her trial testimony, Zelaya sometimes used the words “he” and “him,” without specifying whether she was referring to Lopez or his friend.

4 backed up.5 Hernandez testified that he swung his skateboard at Lopez but did not hit him with it, knowing that he could act in self-defense to save his life.6 He was angry at that point about the situation and was concerned about Zelaya and Farfan. He shoved Lopez, and Lopez’s friend separated them. Hernandez took off his shirt in preparation for a fight because he did not want the blade to get caught on his shirt if Lopez tried to strike him with the knife. Hernandez testified that he did not start the fight. At some point during the altercation between Hernandez and the two men, Farfan told Lopez “to stop harassing [her] friends.” According to Farfan’s trial testimony, Lopez came within 12 to 18 inches of her, looked directly into her eyes, and pointed the knife at her as he threatened to rape and kill her. Lopez’s friend held him back as he moved toward her. She was scared and believed Lopez would carry out the threats based on his actions. At trial, the prosecutor showed Farfan a knife, and she identified it as the knife Lopez used. As the prosecutor played the surveillance video during her testimony, Farfan noted the video depicted the point when she leaned back because Lopez

5 At trial, the parties agreed the knife could not be seen on the video. As Hernandez watched the video on the stand, he testified that the reason he backed up as depicted in the video is because he saw the knife for the first time.

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People v. Lopez CA2/1, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-lopez-ca21-calctapp-2023.