People v. Gonzalez CA2/3

Filed 6/2/15 P. v. Gonzalez CA2/3 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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

SECOND APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION THREE

THE PEOPLE, B258674

Plaintiff and Respondent, (Los Angeles County Super. Ct. No. KA103527) v.

REFUGIO GONZALEZ,

Defendant and Appellant.

APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County, Bruce F. Marrs, Judge. Affirmed.

Melissa A. Fair, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant.

No appearance for Plaintiff and Respondent. __________________________

Refugio Gonzalez was convicted by a jury of grand theft and burglary. The trial court sentenced him to four years in prison. He appeals from the judgment of conviction. We affirm. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND 1. Facts In August 2013, Trang Huynh hired appellant Gonzalez to install an air conditioning system in the El Monte home she shared with her parents. Trang and her mother, Jenny Huynh,1 noticed that Gonzalez engaged in “unusual activities” during the installation. Among other things, when Gonzalez worked in the bedrooms, he kept the doors closed. He left installation of the bedroom air vents for last, giving him an excuse to continue going into the bedrooms. After Jenny caught Gonzalez in Trang’s bedroom with the door locked, she became suspicious and checked her bedroom to see if anything was missing. She discovered her 18-karat gold necklaces, a pendant, and a bracelet were missing from her bedroom; they had been stored in a jewelry box she kept in her nightstand. She had purchased the jewelry for approximately $1,700. Jenny also discovered that $700 in cash was missing from her purse, which was also kept in the bedroom. Jenny alerted Trang to the thefts. Trang checked her own bedroom and discovered that a gold Rolex watch and a seven-piece bangle bracelet set were missing from a locked file cabinet. The watch was valued at approximately $20,000; the bracelets were worth approximately $1,500. Trang purchased a video surveillance camera system and surreptitiously placed the cameras in her and her parents’ bedrooms. Watching a live feed from the cameras, Trang observed Gonzalez in her parents’ bedroom. He searched her mother’s jewelry box, looked under the bed, and opened drawers. A videotape of these activities, taken from the surveillance system, was played for the jury. Trang also saw, via a live feed from the