People v. Chagollan CA2/8

Filed 5/18/16 P. v. Chagollan CA2/8 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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 EIGHT

THE PEOPLE, B265571

Plaintiff and Respondent, (Los Angeles County Super. Ct. No. BA431518) v.

RONALD CHAGOLLAN,

Defendant and Appellant.

APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County. Ronald S. Coen, Judge. Affirmed. Jennifer Hansen, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant. Kamala D. Harris, Attorney General, Gerald A. Engler, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Lance E. Winters, Assistant Attorney General, Margaret E. Maxwell and Tannaz Kouhpainezhad, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent.

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Defendant Ronald Chagollan was charged with one count of making a criminal threat (Pen. Code, § 422), and with hate crime and prior offense allegations (§§ 422.75, 667.5 & 1203.4). The jury found defendant guilty as charged, and he was sentenced to six years in prison. On appeal, defendant challenges the sufficiency of the evidence for his criminal threat conviction, arguing that the threat he was going to “rip the black off” his victim’s face was ambiguous, and that the evidence was insufficient to establish the victim was in sustained fear for her safety. We affirm the judgment. FACTS On November 8, 2014, Dominique J. moved into Laura C.’s Atwater Village apartment. Early in the morning on November 9, Dominique J. had the front door of the apartment propped open with the screen door locked. She noticed defendant, who was “very tall,” standing at the screen door looking in. She repeatedly asked defendant, “May I help you,” but defendant just stood there, unresponsive with a “blank stare.” He seemed “angry, [and] kind of surprised.” He left after five minutes, walking across the street and entering a residence. Later that night, Dominique J. heard defendant yelling in the street, “F--- this shit. This f---ing shit. F--- this. I hate it. F--- this shit.” When Dominique J. asked Laura C. about defendant, Laura C. told her that defendant was their neighbor and that “he yells from time to time.” Around 11:00 p.m. on November 13, 2014, Dominique J. was sleeping in her living room when she was disturbed by a loud banging on the front door, only a few feet away from where she lay. She then heard pounding on the window. Dominique J. was disoriented at first. She then heard defendant yelling “You fucking n-----. Get out. I’m going to rip the f---ing black off your face. You f---ing black ass bitch, get out.” Defendant carried on, repeating himself “very loudly,” and continued banging on the apartment’s door and windows. Dominique J. told defendant to “leave [her] alone,” but the banging and cursing continued for approximately 15 minutes. Dominique J. was scared, and believed her life was in danger. She believed that defendant was capable of carrying out his threats. She was “nervous” and “shaking.”