CA Unpub Decisions

Plaintiff and appellant Solomon Aflalo (plaintiff) appeals from the summary judgment entered in favor of defendant and respondent Community Bank of the Bay (CBB) in this wrongful foreclosure action. We affirm the judgment.

In a tragic incident, Kent Hagan lost consciousness while riding his bicycle and was taken to the emergency room at Torrance Memorial Medical Center. Days after his admission, he underwent heart surgery, and subsequently died. His family sued the hospital for the negligence of the physicians involved in his treatment. After trial, the court entered judgment for the hospital. Finding no error, we affirm.

A jury convicted Joel Ignacio Ambriz (Ambriz) and Albert Sandoval (Sandoval) of the murders of Jose Rodriguez and Cesar Perea, as well as the attempted premeditated murders of Jhony Rodas and Ricardo Garcia. The jury also found that the alleged firearm and gang allegations were true. We affirm in part and reverse in part.

After her employment was terminated, Evelyn Ortega sued her employer Dignity Health, Inc., dba Community Hospital of San Bernardino (Hospital) under the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) (Gov. Code, § 12900 et seq.). Ortega’s claims for disability discrimination, retaliation, failure to engage in the interactive process to determine a reasonable accommodation for her disability, and failure to provide a reasonable accommodation went to trial. The jury returned a special verdict in favor of the Hospital. Ortega appeals from the judgment entered on the jury’s verdict that (1) the Hospital did not fail to engage in the interactive process, and (2) the Hospital did not fail to provide a reasonable accommodation. Because substantial evidence supports the verdict, we affirm.

Plaintiff and appellant David Villagrana, individually and as guardian ad litem for his minor sons, David Villagrana, Jr. and Marco Cris Villagrana, appeals from the judgment entered in favor of defendants and respondents Glendale Adventist Medical Center (Glendale Medical), Michael Frields, M.D. (Frields), and Selena Lantry, M.D. (Lantry), after the trial court granted defendants’ motion for nonsuit in this action for wrongful death and medical malpractice. We affirm the judgment.

We deem defendant and petitioner Keith Mark Maguire’s petition for transfer, filed on December 18, 2018, a petition for writ of mandate and direct issuance of a peremptory writ of mandate ordering the Alameda County Appellate Division to set aside and vacate its October 31 ruling on appeal, rehear argument in Maguire’s appeal, and issue an opinion by the same three-judge panel that hears the argument which addresses all arguments raised by Maguire.
In the interests of justice and to prevent further delay, this decision shall be final as to this court immediately. (Cal. Rules of Court, rule 8.490(b)(2)(A).)

Gerald McGuire appeals from a judgment dismissing his wrongful foreclosure action against Bob Lawton, Steven Sellers and Paul Byrer (Lenders) because he failed to bring his case to trial within five years after the action was commenced. (Civ. Proc. Code § 583.310.) McGuire contends the trial court miscalculated the five-year period by refusing to exclude time when he was represented by an attorney who allegedly failed to prosecute his case. According to McGuire, during that period of time, “[b]ringing the action to trial . . . was impossible, impracticable, or futile.” (§ 583.340 subd. (c).) We reject this contention and affirm the judgment.

Defendant Andrew Jason Saxon pled no contest to one count of corporal injury to someone with whom he had, or previously had, a dating relationship (Pen. Code, § 273.5, subd. (a)), and admitted a great bodily injury enhancement (§ 12022.7, subd. (e)). The trial court sentenced Saxon to five years in prison. Saxon appeals, arguing the trial court abused its discretion when it denied him probation. We affirm.

Defendant Jorge Luis Huerta Alvarez appeals from a judgment in which he was found guilty of multiple lewd acts on a child, possession of child pornography, and use of an instrument to look under clothing. On appeal, defendant contends that the trial court erred when it ordered him to pay $1,500 in attorney’s fees for the services of his court-appointed counsel. We conclude that trial counsel rendered ineffective assistance when he failed to object to the imposition of attorney’s fees. Accordingly, we reverse the judgment and remand the case for the trial court to conduct a hearing on defendant’s ability to pay these fees.

Defendant James Francis Lee was driving his pickup truck south on Highway 101 when he rear-ended the pickup truck of a family that had parked on the shoulder. Four-year-old Jose Diaz was killed, and the family’s father suffered serious injuries. Lee’s blood alcohol level tested at 0.175 percent and 0.16 percent. He had suffered two prior drunk driving convictions in 1988 and 1994.
A jury found Lee guilty of second degree murder, gross vehicular manslaughter, driving under the influence of alcohol and causing injury, and driving with a blood alcohol level of 0.08 percent and causing injury. The jury found various enhancements true, including allegations that Lee had suffered two prior drunk driving convictions within seven years of each other. The trial court imposed a total term of 15 years to life consecutive to four years four months in state prison.

Alejandro Pichardo is the named plaintiff in a putative class action against his former employer, defendant American Financial Network, Inc., for alleged wage and hour violations. Defendant moved to compel individual arbitration and stay the trial court proceedings.

Appellant Kern County Detention Officer’s Association (Association) is an employee organization representing sheriff’s detentions deputies. These deputies are peace officers under Penal Code section 830.1, subdivision (c), whose enumerated responsibilities include securing county custodial facilities and monitoring inmates.

Appellant Luis Antonio Sanchez was 16 years old when he participated in a carjacking, robbery, and first degree special circumstance murder. In 1996, he was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole. In 2014, a writ of habeas corpus was granted, and resentencing was ordered in light of Miller v. Alabama (2012) 567 U.S. 460 (Miller). At the resentencing hearing in 2015, a term of life without parole was again imposed. Sanchez appealed the sentence on the grounds his sentence violated the Eighth Amendment and in our unpublished opinion filed December 16, 2016, we affirmed. Sanchez petitioned for review, review was granted, and on August 29, 2018, the California Supreme Court transferred the matter back to this court for a “determination of whether the matter is rendered moot in light of Senate Bill No. 394, signed into law on October 11, 2017.”

K.M. (mother) appeals from juvenile court orders terminating parental rights to her five children, R.B., K.B., S.B., B.B., and M.B., pursuant to Welfare and Institutions Code section 366.26. (All additional undesignated statutory references are to the Welfare and Institutions Code.) Mother’s only argument for reversal is that the San Bernardino County Department of Children and Family Services (CFS) did not comply with its duty to adequately investigate the children’s possible American Indian heritage and to provide adequate notice of the juvenile court proceedings to the relevant Indian tribes, as mandated by the Indian Child Welfare Act. (25 U.S.C. § 1901 et seq.; ICWA.) In particular, mother argues (1) CFS did not interview family members to obtain information about the children’s maternal grandfather (A.M.) and maternal great-grandmother (B.M.), who was supposedly “full Cherokee,” and (2) the information about A.M. and B.M. provided to Indian tribes was incomplete.