People v. Moten CA2/7

Filed 7/12/21 P. v. Moten CA2/7 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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 SEVEN

THE PEOPLE, B307982

Plaintiff and Respondent, (Los Angeles County Super. Ct. No. NA112984) v.

VICTOR ANTHONY MOTEN,

Defendant and Appellant.

APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County, Judith L. Meyer, Judge. Affirmed. Jack T. Weedin, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant. No appearance for Plaintiff and Respondent. _______________

Victor Anthony Moten appeals from the judgment entered after a jury found him guilty of making a criminal threat and Moten admitted in a bifurcated proceeding he had suffered a prior serious felony conviction within the meaning of the three strikes law. No arguable issues have been identified following review of the record by Moten’s appointed appellate counsel or our own independent review. We affirm. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND In an information filed November 19, 2019 Moten was charged with making a criminal threat (Pen. Code, § 422)1 with special allegations he had suffered a prior serious felony conviction within the meaning of the three strikes law (§§ 667, subds. (b)-(j), 1170.12) and section 667, subdivision (a). Moten pleaded not guilty and denied the special allegations. According to the evidence presented at trial, on August 9, 2019 Bobbi Sutton called the 911 emergency number and then went to a Long Beach Police Department station to report threatening text messages she had received from Moten that included bloody photographs of Nicole Brown Simpson. Moten and Sutton had been in an on-again, off-again intimate relationship for more than seven years. It was Sutton’s understanding that she and Sutton were separated during August 2019. After showing an officer the text messages, Sutton told him she was scared and believed Moten had the ability to carry out his threat to murder her. Sutton explained she believed Moten was upset because she did not attend a court hearing at which he was taken into custody, which resulted in his son being taken