CA Pub. Decisions

Jury reasonably concluded that an endless chain scheme program offering members co-ownership interest in corporation in exchange for payments and for recruiting additional members amounted to illegal and fraudulent sale of securities. Members who bought into program testified that they believed they were investors and co-owners in corporation. These members, being poor, uneducated, and without power to influence corporation's management, relied on corporation's officers to manage their investments. The crime of filing false income tax returns is not part of a common scheme or plan to take property within meaning of Penal Code Sec. 12022.6(b), under which losses from common scheme may be aggregated for purposes of determining sentence enhancement.

Where 35 percent of employee's permanent psychiatric disability was work-related, but 100 percent of one of her psychological disorders was work-related, worker did not satisfy the standard for worker's compensation compensability. An employee's psychiatric injury satisfies the standard for compensability only if the events of employment were the predominant cause of the psychiatric disability.

A modification decision.

A modification decision.

There is a duty of prosecuting attorney to assess eligibility of minor for deferred entry of judgment (DEJ). To furnish notice with the petition is mandatory, as is the duty of the juvenile court to either summarily grant DEJ or examine the record, conduct a hearing, and make "the final determination regarding education, treatment, and rehabilitation." Where neither prosecutor nor judge performed those duties, denial of DEJ constituted a reversible error.

Defendant's drug's danger was publicized in T.V. and newspaper articles but Plaintiff was not aware of dangers until a significant time later. The statute of limitations on Plaintiff's action against Defendant drug maker began when Plaintiff became aware of the dangers.

Where settlement was agreed to in open court on behalf of defendant only by its insurer and a third-party representative and not by a member of its corporate board or a corporate officer, it could not be enforced by motion under Code of Civil Procedure Sec. 664.6. Judgment entered under Sec. 664.6 is reversed on defendant's appeal. Plaintiff is entitled to reinstatement of complaint.

Plaintiff appeals judgment to allow Defendant to spend school bond money to build a gymnasium. Proposition 39, which reduces the vote requirement for school construction bonds from two-thirds to 55 percent if certain conditions are met, requires that school district enact a list of specific projects to be funded. It does not require that the list appear on the ballot, but be available at request. Defense satisfied the accountability requirements by making the list available. Judgment affirmed.

A ballot measure title that informed voters that the measure would "change Councilmember term limits to three terms," but it did not inform them that current maximum was two terms. It was not false, misleading, or partial to measure, within meaning of Elections Code. Trial court erred in ordering city officials to amend the title to reflect the fact that the number of allowed terms would increase if passed.

A modification decision.

The owner of classic car was paid replacement value for the car after defendant's negligence caused the cars destruction. Owner was not entitled to damages for loss of use, from time of loss to time of payment, because he had not used the car for several years.

Trial court violated defendant's Sixth Amendment right to a public trial when it closed the courtroom to all spectators during the testimony of a 14-year-old molestation victim based only on the prosecutor's assertion the victim would have difficulty testifying. Error was structural, requiring reversal of defendant's convictions. No showing of prejudice was required. Reversed and remanded.

A modification decision.

Petitioner, a single mother who lived with her boyfriend, two children, sister, and sister's child, knew that her boyfriend had a history of physically abusing the children. She had taken steps to prevent the abuse, but one day while petitioner was not home, her sister left her (the sister's) child at home in care of petitioner's boyfriend. The child died in his care. There was insufficient evidence to support a finding that petitioner caused the child's death under Welfare and Institutions Code Sec. 300(f)--which authorizes a court to take jurisdiction of a child when the child's parent caused the death of another child through abuse or neglect--or Section 361.5(b)(4), which provides that reunification services need not be provided to a parent who has caused the death of another child through abuse or neglect. Petition granted and case remanded.