People v. Johnson CA1/3

Filed 3/14/25 P. v. Johnson CA1/3 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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

FIRST APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION THREE

THE PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent, A169082 v. ADAM MICHAEL JOHNSON, (San Mateo County Super. Ct. No. 21SF011252A) Defendant and Appellant.

After repeatedly asking a woman for money, Adam Michael Johnson brandished a large knife. A jury convicted him of attempted robbery and found he used a deadly or dangerous weapon during the commission of this crime. The trial court sentenced him to five years in prison, including the middle term of two years for the attempted robbery. On appeal, Johnson argues the court erred by admitting the victim’s testimony about her ongoing fear more than one year after the attempted robbery. He also argues the court did not consider the presumption requiring imposition of the lower term for offenses if a qualifying trauma, such as his childhood trauma, was a contributing factor in the commission of the offense unless aggravating circumstances outweighed mitigating circumstances and doing so would be contrary to the interests of justice. We affirm.

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BACKGROUND One evening in September 2021, Jane Doe left her workplace in Redwood City and waited on the sidewalk for her husband. Johnson approached her and asked for money. He appeared sweaty and desperate, insisting three times that he needed money for food. When she responded she did not have any change, he displayed the handle of a knife. Doe stepped back, and he pulled out the entire knife, with a blade measuring approximately 12 inches long. Fearing that he would stab her, she tried to call the police. He told her not to call and then walked away. Just then, Doe’s husband arrived. Doe got into his car and said “that person right there had threatened me with a knife.” Her husband followed Johnson while she called 911 and described his location to the operator. Officers ultimately stopped Johnson a couple blocks away, and Doe identified him. The district attorney charged Johnson with attempted robbery while using a deadly and dangerous weapon. (Pen. Code, §§ 211, 212.5, 664, 12022, subd. (b)(1); undesignated statutory references are to this code.) The information further alleged he had a prior serious felony conviction (§ 667, subd. (a)(1)), and a conviction for a strike offense (§ 1170.12, subd. (c)(1)). During a jury trial in 2023, Doe testified she was scared when Johnson took out his knife. And over a relevance objection, she stated the September incident continued to affect her emotionally because she no longer felt safe at work. She always looked around to see who was close to her, and she was occasionally fearful of standing alone on the street. The jury found Johnson guilty of attempted second degree robbery and found the weapon enhancement allegation to be true. In a sentencing brief, Johnson argued his extensive childhood trauma was a mitigating factor for reducing his sentence. In support, a licensed 2