In re A.M. CA3

Filed 4/1/21 In re A.M. CA3 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published,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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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 THIRD APPELLATE DISTRICT (Sacramento) ----

In re A.M., a Person Coming Under the Juvenile C090016 Court Law.

THE PEOPLE, (Super. Ct. Nos. JV139601, 52008770) Plaintiff and Respondent,

v.

A.M.,

Defendant and Appellant.

Following a contested jurisdictional hearing, the juvenile court found the minor, A.M., committed battery against a peace officer (Pen. Code, § 243, subd. (b)),1 battery against a school employee (§ 243.6), and other offenses. On appeal, A.M. contends there was insufficient evidence of battery. We disagree and affirm.

1 Further undesignated statutory references are to the Penal Code.

1

I. BACKGROUND A March 2019 Welfare and Institutions Code section 602 petition (petition) alleged that A.M. committed four misdemeanors at a high school when she was 14 years old: possession of a controlled substance (Health & Saf. Code, § 11375, subd. (b)(2)); battery against a peace officer (§ 243, subd. (b)); resisting, obstructing, or delaying a peace officer (§ 148, subd. (a)(1)); and battery against a school employee (§ 243.6). A.M., the peace officer, and the school employee all testified at the contested jurisdictional hearing, and footage from the peace officer’s body camera was admitted into evidence. A. Peace Officer The peace officer, a member of the Rocklin Police Department, testified that on September 17, 2018, while responding to a high school’s request for assistance (and wearing a uniform which had “the full markings, with the badge and patches” reflecting his status) he was “told that there was another student that possibly was under the influence of something.” The officer turned his attention to A.M. and noted that her demeanor was “consistent with being under the influence of something.” But he was unable to confirm his observations because A.M. “was defiant” and called her mother. While on speaker phone, A.M.’s mother was “confrontational” with the officer, saying at one point that the officer was “fuckin’ ridiculous.” While waiting for A.M.’s mother to come to the school, A.M. refused to surrender her phone to school staff and called the officer a “bitch.” The officer responded: “Watch the language. I’m not . . . addressing you that way so please be polite.” During that same conversation, after the officer told A.M. that she was being “defiant,” she replied, “I’m being defiant because you guys are accusing me of shit and I already have anger issues.”