People v. Mata CA4/3

Filed 11/19/25 P. v. Mata CA4/3

NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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

FOURTH APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION THREE

THE PEOPLE,

Plaintiff and Respondent, G063779

v. (Super. Ct. No. 98WF2276)

ERIK MATA, OPINION

Defendant and Appellant.

Appeal from a postjudgment order of the Superior Court of Orange County, Terri K. Flynn-Peister, Judge. Affirmed. Rex Adam Williams, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant. Rob Bonta, Attorney General, Lance E. Winters, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Charles C. Ragland, Assistant Attorney General, Christopher P. Beesley and Evan Stele, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent.

Erik Mata appeals from an order denying his petition for resentencing under Penal Code1 section 1172.6. Because there is substantial evidence he was a major participant in the carjacking and acted with reckless indifference to human life, we affirm the order. FACTS Mata and his brother Juan worked at Slauson Foods with Ismael Galvan, who owned a Pontiac Trans Am. While at work one afternoon in 1998, at about 5:00 p.m., Mata saw his brother approach Galvan, who had stayed after his shift to wash his car. The two men began to argue, a fight ensued, and Mata saw his brother put a plastic bag over Galvan’s head. Mata rushed over to help his brother in the fight, and the two men hit Galvan 16 or 17 times until he was unconscious. They then picked Galvan up and put him in his Trans Am, which Mata’s brother used to drop Galvan near a dumpster. Galvan’s body was discovered near the dumpster at about 6:00 p.m., strangled and severely beaten. Medical evidence indicated he died between 4:00 and 5:00 p.m., and a Y-shaped ligature mark around the front of his neck, which could have been caused by a scrunched-up plastic bag, suggested he tried to get away when he was being strangled. When interviewed by police, Mata confessed to helping his brother beat Galvan. Although he claimed he did not realize Galvan had died, Mata also repeatedly said his brother dropped off the “body,” suggesting he knew Galvan was dead or dying after their interaction. A jury convicted Mata of first degree murder and also found true a special circumstance allegation that the murder occurred during a carjacking. The trial court sentenced him to life in prison without the