In re Ryan M.
Filed 7/25/06 In re Ryan M. CA1/2
NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS
California Rules of Court, rule 977(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 977(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 977.
IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA
FIRST APPELLATE DISTRICT
DIVISION TWO
| In re RYAN M., a Person Coming Under the Juvenile Court Law. | |
| THE PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. RYAN M., Defendant and Appellant. | A111901 (Napa County Super. Ct. No. JV14228) |
Introduction
Ryan M. appeals from the order of the Napa County Superior Court sustaining a juvenile wardship petition (Welf. & Inst. Code, § 602), declaring him a ward of the court, upon finding that he had made criminal threats (Pen. Code, § 422)[1] and that the threats constituted a hate crime. (§ 422.75, subd. (a).) The court ordered appellant to serve a 30-day commitment in juvenile hall, which it then stayed pending further review of the court or successful completion of probation.
Appellant contends that the evidence was insufficient to support a finding that his actions constituted a criminal threat in violation of section 422. We shall conclude that, under the test set forth by our California Supreme Court in In re George T. (2004) 33 Cal.4th 620 (George T.), the ambiguous nature of the written statement, along with the circumstances surrounding its dissemination, fail to establish that it constituted a criminal threat. (Id. at p. 624.)
I. Facts and Procedural History
On February 18, 2005, appellant, a 14-year-old eighth-grade student in Napa, distributed copies of a writing to several students at his middle school. The writing read: â€
