People v. Quaife CA5

Filed 2/23/26 P. v. Quaife CA5

NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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

FIFTH APPELLATE DISTRICT

THE PEOPLE, F088822 Plaintiff and Respondent, (Super. Ct. No. FP004853A) v. OPINION TIFFANY JO QUAIFE,

Defendant and Appellant.

APPEAL from an order of the Superior Court of Kern County. Stephanie Renee Childers Stewart, Judge. Candice L. Christensen, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant. Rob Bonta, Attorney General, Lance E. Winters, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Kimberley A. Donohue, Assistant Attorney General, Amanda D. Cary and Hannah Janigian Chavez, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent. -ooOoo- This is the second time appellant Tiffany Jo Quaife has challenged a recommitment order before this court. Appellant was declared an offender with a mental

health disorder (OMHD)1 pursuant to section 2962 in January 2021. !(CT 36)! In 2023, the jury found appellant met the criteria for continued commitment and the trial court ordered appellant recommitted for one year to end on October 13, 2024. We affirmed the recommitment order in the nonpublished opinion, People v. Quaife (Sept. 20, 2024, F086999) (Quaife). In 2024, the district attorney petitioned to extend appellant’s commitment by another year. Following a jury trial, the trial court ordered appellant’s commitment extended for another year, or until October 13, 2025. Appellant contends insufficient evidence supports the recommitment order because she has been nonviolent since her commitment offense and her mental health disorder is controlled with medication. !(AOB 8–16)! The order, however, expired while this appeal was pending, and we therefore dismiss this appeal as moot. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND2 Appellant assaulted an elderly victim with a knife on December 9, 2018. Appellant reportedly was trying to cut herself in a suicide attempt but cut the victim instead. In November 2019, appellant pled guilty to infliction of an injury on an elderly adult 65 years of age or older under circumstances or conditions likely to produce great bodily harm or death (§ 368, subd. (b)(1)) and was sentenced to the middle term of six years. (Quaife, supra, F086999.) On January 19, 2021, appellant was committed to Patton State Hospital (Patton) as a mentally ill prisoner. (§ 2684.) Appellant’s commitment status was changed to an OMHD pursuant to section 2962 on October 13, 2021, with a maximum commitment