People v. Larson CA3

Filed 2/7/25 P. v. Larson CA3 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 8.1115(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA THIRD APPELLATE DISTRICT (Sacramento) ----

THE PEOPLE,

Plaintiff and Respondent, C100472

v. (Super. Ct. No. 22FE021268)

ROBERT DEAN LARSON,

Defendant and Appellant.

A jury convicted defendant Robert Dean Larson of possession of child pornography and using a child to pose for child pornography. The trial court sentenced him to two years in prison. Defendant now contends (1) the evidence is insufficient to support his convictions, (2) the trial court should not have prevented him from arguing that defendant’s son may have been responsible for the photographs found on two cell phones, and (3) defendant’s sentence for using a child to pose for child pornography must be stayed under Penal Code section 654.1 Finding no merit in the contentions, we will affirm the judgment.

1 Undesignated statutory references are to the Penal Code.

1

BACKGROUND A.C. (mother) and her former husband had two daughters. B.C. (the older daughter) was born in 2014, and P.C. (the younger daughter) was born in 2016. Sometimes the daughters would stay with defendant, who was the former husband’s stepfather. A few weeks after a visit in the summer of 2021, defendant texted mother three photographs of the older daughter taken when she was between the ages of five and six. The photographs were filtered by defendant to make it appear that the older daughter was wearing makeup, and in one of the photos, it looked like the older daughter was not wearing panties. The photos added to mother’s suspicions and she contacted authorities. Authorities eventually executed a search warrant at the home defendant shared with his adult son. During the search, authorities recovered seven cellular telephones from defendant’s bedroom, which defendant said belonged to him. Forensic downloads and a review of the contents of three of the phones (a Samsung Galaxy S10, a Samsung Galaxy S8, and a Samsung Galaxy S9) yielded evidence used at trial. Two phones found on defendant’s nightstand next to his bed contained photos of the older daughter. Seven photos from the Galaxy S9, all taken between June 6 and June 10, 2021, were used at trial. The first showed a nude prepubescent female laying on her back in a bathtub; the front of her vulva was in view and her body from the chest upward was obscured by a shower door. The photo also contained what appeared to be a white male knee in the foreground. Another photo showed the older daughter facing forward, laying on her stomach on a bed wearing a sweaterdress covering part of her buttocks and no panties; the photo was taken at a low angle from behind with the older daughter’s legs spread apart, allowing the viewer to see a portion of the older daughter’s buttocks and vulva. A similar photo showed the older daughter in the same outfit, this time with her legs bent at the knee, still without panties. Of the other photos recovered from the Galaxy S9, one had the younger daughter looking at the camera in the foreground, while another had the younger daughter lifting the older daughter’s pink pajama skirt, revealing