People v. Valenzuela

198 Cal. Rptr. 3d 276, 244 Cal. App. 4th 692, 2016 Cal. App. LEXIS 76
CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal, 4th District
DecidedFebruary 3, 2016
DocketD066907
StatusPublished
Cited by37 cases

This text of 198 Cal. Rptr. 3d 276 (People v. Valenzuela) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Court of Appeal, 4th District primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People v. Valenzuela, 198 Cal. Rptr. 3d 276, 244 Cal. App. 4th 692, 2016 Cal. App. LEXIS 76 (Cal. Ct. App. 2016).

Opinion

AARON, J.

*696A jury convicted Laura Reynoso Valenzuela of carjacking (Pen.Code, § 215, subd. (a)1 ; count 1), reckless evasion of a peace officer (Veh.Code, § 2800.2, subd. (a) ; count 2), and possession of methamphetamine (Health & Saf.Code, § 11377, subd. (a), count 3.) Valenzuela waived a jury trial on two alleged prison priors. The trial court found one alleged prison prior true and the other not true. The court sentenced Valenzuela to a total term of six years eight months in prison, consisting of the middle term of five years on count 1, eight months (one-third the middle term) on count 2, one year for the prison prior conviction, and the middle term of two years, concurrent, on count 3.

*279On appeal, Valenzuela asserts that the trial court erred by allowing the prosecutor to ask her whether she had a prior conviction for reckless evasion. Valenzuela also asserts that Proposition 47 requires this court to reduce count 3 to a misdemeanor and strike the one-year sentence enhancement imposed for her prison prior. We reject Valenzuela's contentions and affirm the judgment.

FACTUAL BACKGROUND

A. The People's Evidence

At around 7:30 a.m. on March 7, 2014, Ana Lopez turned on her car to warm it up before taking her six-year-old son to school. The car was parked in her driveway in front of her house in Brawley. After starting her car Lopez went inside her residence, and came back outside two or three minutes later with her son. At trial Lopez testified that as she started to open the rear door on the driver's side to put her son into his car seat, Valenzuela ran up to her and pushed her out of the way. Lopez fell to the ground while her son stood *697nearby crying. Valenzuela jumped into the car and quickly drove off. Lopez watched Valenzuela drive down the alley, turn onto Fifth Street and then onto K Street. Lopez went back inside to get her phone and immediately called 911.

Lopez came back outside while on the phone with a 911 operator. A neighbor who Lopez had never met before, Rudy Ortiz, approached Lopez and told her that he had seen Valenzuela take the car and that Valenzuela had almost run him over. Brawley Police Officer Frank Morales was dispatched to the area. After performing a preliminary search for the stolen car, Officer Morales drove to Lopez's house, where he spoke with Lopez, her son, Lopez's husband (who arrived home after Valenzuela took the car), and Ortiz.

In the meantime, other police officers in the area continued to search for Valenzuela. Sergeant Jeff Caudill, who was in uniform, was on patrol nearby in his marked police car. About 20 minutes after the incident was reported, Caudill spotted Valenzuela driving Lopez's car. Caudill made a U-turn to head in the direction that Valenzuela was driving and turned on his car's overhead lights. Valenzuela sped ahead and Caudill turned on his car's sirens and followed her. Two officers in a second marked police car, including Morales, saw Caudill and followed behind with lights and sirens on. As the police pursued her, Valenzuela crossed into oncoming traffic to pass cars, skidded into a field, then drove back onto a residential street where she drove at a speed of up to 65 miles per hour. Valenzuela ran through several stop signs and through an intersection with crossing guards as children walking to school scrambled to get out of her way. Valenzuela continued speeding through the residential neighborhood until the car's wheels locked and she crashed head on into a telephone pole.

After Valenzuela hit the telephone pole, the second police car pulled up to the stopped car. Valenzuela threw open the driver's door, hitting the police car, and attempted to run away. Caudill yelled to Valenzuela to stop. As she tried to run past Caudill, he grabbed her and tackled her to the ground. After Valenzuela was in custody, Morales searched Lopez's car. Inside he found a backpack containing Valenzuela's property. Morales also searched Valenzuela and found a plastic bag containing crystal methamphetamine in a front pocket of her pants. Valenzuela was arrested and taken to the hospital. At the hospital, Morales read Valenzuela her rights under Miranda v. Arizona (1966) 384 U.S. 436, 86 S.Ct. 1602, 16 L.Ed.2d 694, which she waived, and interviewed her. When Morales asked Valenzuela *280what happened, she responded "I panicked. I fucked up." She said she took Lopez's car because she was homeless and "it beat walking."

At trial, Morales testified that Valenzuela told him that she noticed Lopez's running car as she walked down an alley. She denied having pushed Lopez *698and told Morales that no one was present when she took the car. Morales also testified that Valenzuela told him that she knew she should have stopped when the police began pursuing her but that she couldn't, and that she felt like she had blacked out.

B. Defense Evidence

Valenzuela testified that she saw Lopez's running car while she was riding her bicycle in the area. After spotting the car, she rode to the house where Ortiz was watering plants and left her bicycle and other possessions there. Valenzuela testified that she went back on foot and took Lopez's car. She denied that Lopez was present at the time she took the car. Valenzuela stated that she had never seen Lopez prior to their first encounter in court in this case. Valenzuela admitted running from the police and driving recklessly during the pursuit. She said that she fled because she did not want to go back to jail. Valenzuela also admitted having suffered prior felony convictions for car theft in 2010 and receiving stolen property in 2012. In addition, Valenzuela admitted that she had methamphetamine in her possession at the time she was arrested.

Ortiz testified that he knew Valenzuela through his cousin, who lived near Lopez. He had met Valenzuela two or three times prior to the morning of the incident. That morning, Ortiz was outside his cousin's home watering the lawn. Valenzuela approached Ortiz and asked him if he would watch her belongings. Valenzuela left her bicycle and a bag with Ortiz, and quickly left. Shortly after that, Ortiz heard tires spinning and saw Valenzuela drive past him in Lopez's car. He then saw Lopez yelling hysterically that someone had taken her car. Ortiz did not want to talk to the police because of a recent interaction with the police and because of his prior felony convictions.

DISCUSSION

I

Admission of Prior Felony Conviction

Valenzuela first contends that the trial court erred by admitting her prior felony conviction for reckless evasion.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
198 Cal. Rptr. 3d 276, 244 Cal. App. 4th 692, 2016 Cal. App. LEXIS 76, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-valenzuela-calctapp4d-2016.