People v. De Angelis

California Court of Appeal Oct 18, 1979 No. Crim. 34661Published

Before: Stephens

AI Brief

AI-generated · verify before citing

Holding. The court held that the trial court did not err in denying the motion to sever counts, but that the conviction for assault must be reversed because it is a lesser included offense that merges into the conviction for mayhem.

Issues

Whether the trial court erred in denying the motion to sever the counts for trial.
Whether the admission of in-court identification following photo identification violated due process.
Whether the defendant could be convicted and sentenced for both mayhem and assault arising from the same event.

Disposition. Affirmed in part, reversed in part.

Quotations verified verbatim against the opinion

“All of the events charged occurred on the same day, area, and within a short span of time.”

“An assault is necessarily included in mayhem where the assault is a continuing event and the mayhem results during the course thereof. The lesser merges into the major.”

“It is necessaiy to reverse the conviction on count II involving the lesser offense charged upon Davies.”

[839]

Opinion

STEPHENS, Acting P. J.

Defendant was charged with mayhem in violation of Penal Code section 203 (count I); two counts of assault by means of force likely to produce great bodily injury in violation of Penal Code section 245, subdivision (a), (counts II and III); two counts of battery in violation of Penal Code section 242 (counts IV and V). A motion to sever the counts for trial was denied. Following jury trial, defendant was found guilty as charged in counts I, III, IV and V, and guilty of a lesser included offense, assault, in violation of Penal Code section 240 in count II.

Counts I and II relate to person, David A. Davies.

The facts are that Davies commenced drinking beer and smoking marijuana; i.e.; he split a six-pack and smoked two “joints” with two friends between 1:30 and 3 p.m. He then went to his residence, arriving around 4:30 and after dinner met another friend, Jeff Stone, around 8 o’clock. Davies and Stone left Davies’ house around 9 o’clock and then visited Calvin Tanaka’s house. While at Tanaka’s house the persons present indulged in two mixed drinks. The testimony was that at 10:30 Davies was not intoxicated. At that time, Davies, Stone, and Christopher Bingham went in one car, and Tanaka and Phil Bettanour in another to Marquis West, an adult nightclub.

Davies, when talking to two girls in the nightclub parking lot, was assaulted by defendant. During the ensuing altercation, Davies had a portion of his ear bitten off.

Bouncers from the club broke up the fight and told Davies to leave. Davies proceeded to kick defendant a couple of times as he was on the ground, then left. Davies had an emergency operation to replace the detached portion of his ear.

On the same night and at the same club, Neiro Quintinella and Steven Joe Harris encountered defendant inside the club. Neiro was first struck in the face and later kicked in the leg by defendant. Neiro and Steven commenced to leave and when outside the club they were attacked by someone.

The assaults were made by defendant who was described by Neiro as about five feet seven inches to five feet eight inches with blondish brown hair and identified by a photograph and as being “the

People v. De Angelis

AI Brief

More from California Court of Appeal

Related research

AI Brief