People v. Martinez

13 Cal. App. 4th 23, 16 Cal. Rptr. 2d 556, 93 Cal. Daily Op. Serv. 1063, 93 Daily Journal DAR 2002, 1993 Cal. App. LEXIS 135
CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedFebruary 8, 1993
DocketE009595
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 13 Cal. App. 4th 23 (People v. Martinez) 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. Martinez, 13 Cal. App. 4th 23, 16 Cal. Rptr. 2d 556, 93 Cal. Daily Op. Serv. 1063, 93 Daily Journal DAR 2002, 1993 Cal. App. LEXIS 135 (Cal. Ct. App. 1993).

Opinion

Opinion

DABNEY, J.

Defendant Pedro Maestas Martinez was charged in an information in count I with kidnapping for robbery (Pen. Code, § 209, subd. (b)) 1 ; *25 in count II with robbery (§ 211); in counts III through VI with rape (§261, subd. (2)); in counts VII through X with sodomy (§ 286, subd. (c)); in count XI with oral copulation (§ 288a, subd. (c)); and in count XII with dissuading a witness from testifying (§ 136.1, subd. (c)). As to the rape, sodomy, and oral copulation counts, the information alleged that the victim was kidnapped for the purpose of committing the sex offenses (§ 667.8). As to the rape counts, the information alleged that Martinez inflicted great bodily injury upon the victim during the commission of the offenses (§ 12022.8). Finally, the information alleged that Martinez had suffered a prior robbery conviction (§ 667, subd. (a)).

The jury found Martinez guilty of simple kidnapping as a lesser included offense in count I, robbery in count II, rape in counts III and IV, sodomy in counts VII and VIII, oral copulation in count XI, and dissuading a witness in count XII. The jury found true the special allegations that Martinez inflicted great bodily injury in committing the rapes. The jury found him not guilty of the offenses charged in counts V, VI, IX, and X. The jury failed to reach a verdict on the allegation that Martinez kidnapped the victim for the purpose of committing sex offenses, and the court declared a mistrial as to that issue. In a court trial, the prior robbery conviction allegation was found true.

The court sentenced Martinez to prison for a total term of sixty years, as follows: for the kidnapping, the two rapes, the two sodomies, and the oral copulation, the court imposed the upper term of eight years for each offense and ordered full-term consecutive sentences for the sex offenses under section 667.6, subdivision (d). For robbery and for dissuading a witness, the court imposed a consecutive term of one-third the middle term, or one year, for each count. The court imposed a five-year enhancement for the great bodily injury and another five-year enhancement for the prior felony conviction.

On appeal, Martinez contends: (1) the jury was instructed only as to a misdemeanor offense in count XII, and his felony conviction must be reversed; (2) the trial court erred in refusing to instruct on the specific intent to inflict great bodily injury in connection with the section 12022.8 enhancement; (3) the trial court erred in determining that full-term consecutive sentences were mandatory; (4) the trial court failed to state its reasons for imposing consecutive terms for robbery and dissuading a witness; (5) the trial court erred under section 654 in imposing consecutive sentences for the kidnapping and for the sex crimes; (6) the abstract of judgment must be amended; and (7) he is entitled to an additional day of custody credit. The People concede error in the abstract of judgment and the computation of *26 custody credit. We conclude the trial court erred in failing to instruct the jury as to an element of count XII and in imposing full-term consecutive sentences under section 667.6, subdivision (d) as to certain of the sex offenses. The instructional error requires reversal as to count XII; the error in applying mandatory sentencing provisions requires remand for resentencing.

Facts

About 1:30 p.m. on August 7, 1990, Deon R. was leaving the parking lot of a bank in Perris, where she had just obtained $182 in cash. Her truck had a “for sale” sign in it, and Martinez approached her and asked about the truck. He asked if she would be interested in trading the truck for a 1989 Hyundai. When she said she would, he got in the passenger side of the truck to take a test drive.

Martinez directed Deon to drive past some railroad tracks and onto a dirt road to test the shocks. As they drove away from town she became scared and told Martinez she did not want to continue. He said there were many motorcyclists in the area, and she had nothing to worry about. Deon let Martinez drive the truck, and he started “driving crazy” and speeding over bumps.

Deon told Martinez he was going to ruin her truck. She tried to get out by opening the passenger door. He told her to shut the door and not to worry. He continued driving away from town for awhile. He then turned the truck around and shut off the engine. Deon jumped out, and Martinez also got out. Deon told Martinez he was scaring her, and he said she could not leave him there. She replied that he could get in the back of the truck, but he refused.

Deon got back into the driver’s seat, and Martinez entered the passenger’s seat and grabbed her around the neck. He pulled her over to him and said she had known this was going to happen, and she wanted it. He pulled his pants down and pushed her head onto his lap, telling her to “suck his dick.” She fought and screamed until he choked her. He told her he would kill her if she did not stop screaming. He then forced her to orally copulate him.

Deon continued to struggle and managed to get out of the truck. However, Martinez held onto her shirt, pulled her back, and began strangling her until she ceased resisting. He placed her face up on the driver’s seat of the truck and fondled her breasts. He then turned her over on her stomach and alternately sodomized and raped her several times. When he finished, he wiped himself off with some napkins, which he threw outside the truck. Deon threw her underwear out of the truck.

*27 He made Deon get back in the passenger’s seat, and he drove back to town. On the way, he asked her if she had any money. When she said no, he accused her of lying because she had just come from the bank. She then gave him the $182 in cash she had withdrawn. He grabbed her purse and went through it, removing her remaining money. When she said she had no money to take care of her children or pay the babysitter, he gave her back $25.

While they were driving, he told her he would kill her and her children if she told anyone. He looked at her license and at an envelope in the glove box to be sure of her address, and he had her write down her phone number and address on a piece of paper. He took her photograph of her children so that if she turned him in, he would “know who to look for and come back and kill you and your family.” When Deon started crying that the picture was the only one she had, he returned it, adding another threat to kill her if she said anything.

Martinez got out of the truck at a gas station and walked away. Deon stopped a motorcycle officer. She described Martinez to the officer and told him what had happened. It was then about 3 p.m. The police drove her around the area, and she spotted Martinez on a bicycle near some apartments. The officers caught him, and she identified him as her assailant.

Dr. Jerry Thrush examined Deon at the hospital. He found teeth marks on the inside of Deon’s mouth where Martinez had hit her; large reddish contusions on her neck, cheek, shoulder, and thigh; and a half-inch tear to the posterior of her vagina. The tear could not have been caused by normal intercourse, and was consistent with the type of force Deon described. He recommended that the tear be sutured, but she refused.

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Bluebook (online)
13 Cal. App. 4th 23, 16 Cal. Rptr. 2d 556, 93 Cal. Daily Op. Serv. 1063, 93 Daily Journal DAR 2002, 1993 Cal. App. LEXIS 135, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-martinez-calctapp-1993.