People v. Smith CA2/8

Filed 11/22/21 P. v. Smith CA2/8 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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, B306980

Plaintiff and Respondent, Los Angeles County Super. Ct. No. VA151380 v.

JASON THOMAS SMITH,

Defendant and Appellant.

APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County, Debra Cole-Hall, Judge. Affirmed. Richard B. Lennon and Pilar M. Escontrias, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant. Rob Bonta, Attorney General, Lance E. Winters, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Susan Sullivan Pithey, Senior Assistant Attorney General, Roberta L. Davis and William H. Shin, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent. ____________________

Jason Thomas Smith broke into a home and assaulted his girlfriend. A jury convicted him of numerous crimes. Smith challenges only his conviction for first degree burglary, claiming it is unsupported by the evidence. Finding sufficient evidence to sustain the verdict, we affirm. Statutory references are to the Penal Code. I In reciting relevant facts about the incident, we omit conflicting evidence. Our job in appeals of this kind is to look for substantial evidence, not to resolve evidentiary conflicts. (See People v. Zamudio (2008) 43 Cal.4th 327, 357 (Zamudio).) Jessica Ferris was housesitting for a friend in August 2019. Smith was staying there with Ferris and Ferris’s young son. Smith and Ferris had been dating for several years. Ferris also spent time with Smith’s younger sister. They had gone shopping, and the sister left her wallet in Ferris’s purse. While at the friend’s home, Smith and Ferris got into an argument. Ferris told Smith to leave. Smith, in turn, demanded that Ferris give him money, the wallet, a bottle of liquor, or a ride. Ferris refused and again told Smith he needed to leave. She said she would get the wallet to Smith’s sister herself. Smith left, and Ferris locked the doors and windows. She was afraid he would return. He did, twice. The second time, Ferris heard a loud noise, saw a large hole by the “doggie” or pet door, and saw Smith inside the house. Smith did not have permission to reenter the home. Ferris called 911 and tried to prevent Smith from leaving—she had told her son to run to a neighbor’s house and wanted to keep