CA Unpub Decisions

R.P. (minor) appeals from an order adjudging him a ward of the juvenile court. (Welf. & Inst. Code, § 602.) The court sustained a petition for first degree residential burglary. (Pen. Code, §§ 459, 460.) Minor was placed in a camp-community program for seven to nine months. The court set a maximum confinement period of six years.

A jury found appellant Eric Geffen guilty of residential burglary (Pen. Code, § 459). In a bifurcated proceeding, appellant admitted having suffered two prior serious or violent felony convictions within the meaning of the Three Strikes law (§§ 667, subds. (b)-(i), 1170.12) and section 667, subdivision (a)(1). After striking one of the prior strikes for sentencing purposes (§ 667, subds. (b)-(i); see People v. Superior Court (Romero) (1996) 13 Cal.4th 497), the trial court sentenced appellant to 18 years in prison, consisting of the mid-term of four years, doubled to eight years pursuant to section 667, subdivision (e)(1), plus five years for each prior conviction pursuant to section 667, subdivision (a)(1). Appellant was awarded 360 days of custody credit.

Stanley Shelley appeals from the March 7, 2017 judgment of misdemeanor assault and imposition of a sentence of 180 days consecutive to the felony term he is currently serving in prison. Following our independent examination of the entire record pursuant to People v. Wende (1979) 25 Cal.3d 436 (Wende), we conclude no arguable issues exist. Accordingly, we affirm.

Brendan J. Roche appeals from a summary judgment granted in favor of defendant Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. (Wells Fargo) on his wrongful foreclosure complaint. Appellant claims that Wells Fargo violated the “dual tracking” provisions of the Homeowner’s Bill of Rights (HBOR; Civ. Code, § 2923.6, subd, (c)) by not postponing the foreclosure sale while his loan modification application was pending. (See Giles v. JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. (2017) 7 Cal.App.5th 907, 912; Monterossa v. Superior Court (2015) 237 Cal.App.4th 747, 752-753.) After appellant submitted the loan modification application, appellant was asked to provide the 2012 business tax return for Recentis Intermediaries, LLC (Recentis), a company created and owned by appellant. The trial court granted summary judgment because appellant failed to provide the business tax return or submit a complete loan modification application before the property was sold. We affirm.

Avak Sahagian appeals his conviction, by jury, of assault with a deadly weapon, an automobile (Pen. Code, § 245, subd. (a)(1)), and misdemeanor hit-and-run driving. (Veh. Code, § 20002, subd. (a), (c).) The trial court sentenced appellant to a total term in state prison of 4 years, 8 months. He contends the trial court prejudicially erred when it admitted evidence of his prior conviction of felony hit-and-run driving causing injury to another person. We affirm.

A student in an advanced scuba diving course died as a result of injuries sustained during a night dive in rough waters. His wife here sues for wrongful death the instructor and the company that offered the course. The student had signed a liability release, which, under the law, precludes a claim of ordinary negligence but not a claim for gross negligence. We conclude on the facts presented that the trial court properly granted summary judgment to the defendants because there was no triable issue of material fact as to whether defendants’ conduct constituted gross negligence.

A jury found Noe Chang Leon guilty of assault with a deadly or dangerous weapon, a shoe (Pen. Code, § 245, subd. (a)(1) ), assault with force likely to cause great bodily injury (id., subd. (a)(4)), and witness dissuasion (§ 136.1, subd. (c)(1)). The jury found true that the dissuasion was accompanied by a threat of force or violence. Leon admitted a gang enhancement as to the assault with a deadly weapon count. (§ 186.22, subd. (b)(1).) The court sentenced Leon to nine years in state prison.

Plaintiff and appellant Laura Tevanyan challenges a judgment entered in favor of defendant and respondent JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., following the trial court’s order granting defendant’s motion for summary judgment. Plaintiff contends that conflicting expert testimony created a triable issue of fact, precluding summary judgment.
We affirm.

Appellant Jose Monterrosa (Monterrosa) appeals from the trial court’s orders granting special motions to strike his malicious prosecution complaint under Code of Civil Procedure section 425.16, the “anti-SLAPP statute.” We conclude that the instant malicious prosecution complaint arose from the filing of an earlier malicious prosecution complaint, which is protected activity under the statute, and that Monterrosa failed to show a probability of prevailing. Accordingly, we affirm the orders granting the anti-SLAPP motions. We also affirm the order awarding costs and attorney fees to two of the three defendants.

In January 2008, defendant Venus Detrice Moore was found not guilty by reason of insanity of a knife attack on her sister and was admitted to a state psychiatric hospital. In September 2012, defendant was found eligible for community outpatient treatment. In December 2015, defendant’s outpatient status was revoked and she was returned to the state hospital.
Defendant appeals from the order revoking her outpatient status, asserting that the revocation hearing was not timely held and the revocation order was not supported by substantial evidence. We conclude that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in revoking defendant’s outpatient status, and thus we affirm the revocation order.

Christine De Leon (De Leon) appeals from the summary judgment granted in favor of AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (AvalonBay). We find no error and affirm.

MK Greentea Limited, Inc. (MK Greentea) appeals the portion of an August 28, 2015, judgment in favor of Peter Rubin & Simon LLP (Peter Rubin & Simon) awarding it damages on its cross-complaint seeking to recover fees for legal representation involving disputes over the motion picture “Material Girls.” In addition, MK Greentea and Milton Kim (Kim) challenge a February 26, 2016, order awarding $227,213.50 in cost of proof expenses to Peter Rubin & Simon, Gary Raskin (Raskin), and Raskin Ritter LLP (Raskin Ritter) (collectively Respondents) pertaining to allegations in MK Greentea and Kim’s complaint that they were misadvised by Respondents to enter a settlement with Maverick Films, LLC (Maverick Films) and its affiliates (Maverick Settlement), and that Respondents then interfered with that settlement.

Two separate juries convicted defendants Lemont Everett Townsend and Calvin Dewayne Holt of first degree robbery. (Pen. Code, §§ 211, 212.5, subd. (a).) The jury that tried Townsend also found him guilty of assault with a firearm (§ 245, subd. (a)(2)) and attempted second degree robbery (§§ 211, 212.5, subd. (c), 664). It was further alleged each defendant had prior strike convictions and had served prior separate prison terms. (§§ 667, subd. (d), 667.5, subd. (b), 1170.12, subd. (b).) Those allegations were admitted (Townsend) or found true (Holt). The trial court sentenced Townsend to 22 years 4 months in state prison and Holt to 35 years to life in state prison. We affirm the judgment as to Townsend. We modify and affirm the judgment as to Holt.

Seeking to avenge the death of a friend, Londale McNeil (McNeil), Dayvion Deandre Combs (Combs), Cedric Octavia Harris (Harris) and Paul Demetrius Allen, Jr., (Allen) drove into a rival gang’s territory looking for the man they believed was responsible for their friend’s death—Keiun Harris. When they could not find Keiun, the four drove deeper into the gang’s territory. McNeil and Combs then opened fire on another vehicle they spotted. Two men—Leroy Bernardez (Bernardez) and Diallo O’Quinn (O’Quinn)—occupied the vehicle. McNeil, who stood in front of Combs, fired a single shot from his .357-caliber revolver. Combs fired 15 shots, one of which fatally struck McNeil.