People v. Jones CA2/6

Filed 8/15/16 P. v. Jones CA2/6 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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 SIX

THE PEOPLE, 2d Crim. No. B262297 (Super. Ct. No. MA063477) Plaintiff and Respondent, (Los Angeles County)

v.

MELVIN E. JONES et al.,

Defendants and Appellants.

Melvin E. Jones and Sparkle L. Harris appeal judgment after conviction by a jury of making criminal threats, intimidating a witness, and assault. (Pen. Code, §§ 422, subd. (a), 140, subd. (a), 245, subd. (a)(4).)1 Jones was sentenced to a term of 38 years to life, including a three-year enhancement for inflicting great bodily injury. (§ 12022.7, subd. (a).) Harris was sentenced to a term of 13 years, including a 10-year enhancement for committing a violent felony in association with and for the benefit of the Pueblo Bishop Bloods street gang. (§ 186.22, subd. (b)(1)(C).) Jones and Harris contend there is not sufficient evidence to support the sentence enhancements, and that the trial court abused its discretion when it denied Harris’s motion to strike the gang enhancement in the interest of justice. We affirm.

1 All further statutory references are to the Penal Code.

BACKGROUND Jones and Harris attacked Shareese Session outside her apartment. Jones grabbed Session by the throat and pinned her against a wall while he and Harris each hit Session once in the face with a fist. The attack caused a single laceration on Session’s nose which required stitches and left a scar. Session testified that Jones hit the side of her face and Harris hit her in the nose, and after Jones and Harris ran away she noticed she was bleeding. A neighbor who witnessed the attack from 10 feet away testified it was the punch by Jones that drew blood. The People alleged both appellants inflicted great bodily injury on Session based on the laceration to Session’s nose and the scar. (§ 12022.7, subd. (a).) The People also alleged appellants committed the attack in association with and for the benefit of a criminal street gang. (§ 186.22, subd. (b)(1)(C).) Jones is a Pueblo Bishop Bloods gang member. Harris is not a gang member. Her brother is a member of the All- For-Crime gang, an ally of the Pueblo Bishop Bloods. Three months prior to the attack, Session reported to police that Harris’s brother was involved in a shooting at the building. Thereafter, whenever Session walked past Harris at the apartment building, Harris would mention the Bloods and Pueblos and say, “Oh, there goes the snitch. I’m gonna get you,” or “I’m gonna beat your ass.” Harris also stood outside Session’s apartment at 4:00 a.m. yelling, “Snitches get ditches.” When Session asked her to stop, Harris responded with “Bloods” and stated, “You’re gonna get your ass beat.” Session, who manages the apartment building where the attack took place, had previously called the police complaining that Harris was loitering and fighting on the property. On one occasion when Session asked appellants to leave the property, they stated, “We’re from Pueblos and we[] can be here if we want to.” During the attack, Jones pumped his fist and said, “I’m Bloods. I’ll beat your ass, bitch.” Harris said, “I’m gonna beat your ass, bitch. You snitched. We Bloods. You’re about to get your ass beat.” Both appellants stated, “We’re from Pueblos” and made repeated references to the Bloods gang.