People v. Best CA4/1

Filed 12/28/23 P. v. Best CA4/1 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.

COURT OF APPEAL, FOURTH APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION ONE

STATE OF CALIFORNIA

THE PEOPLE, D082018

Plaintiff and Respondent,

v. (Super. Ct. No. SCS318714)

DARLENE RICHARD BEST,

Defendant and Appellant.

APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of San Diego County, Maryann D’Addezio, Judge. Affirmed. Stephanie A. Lickel, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant. No appearance for Plaintiff and Respondent.

A jury convicted Darlene Richard Best of violating Penal Code,1 section 487, subdivision (a). The court granted probation and imposed an $820 fine pursuant to section 1465.7, subdivision (a), a $40 operations

1 Statutory references are to the Penal Code unless otherwise specified.

assessment, a $41 theft fine under section 1202.5, and a restitution fine to be determined. Best filed a timely notice of appeal. Appellate counsel has filed a brief pursuant to People v. Wende (1979) 25 Cal.3d 436 (Wende) indicating counsel has not been able to identify any arguable issues for reversal on appeal. Counsel asks the court to independently review the record for error as mandated by Wende. We offered Best the opportunity to file her own brief on appeal, but she has not responded. FACTUAL BACKGROUND Appellate counsel has provided an accurate summary of the evidence produced at trial. We will utilize that summary for background purposes. Best moved into Continental Condominiums in 1998. After living in the property for about two weeks, Best discovered that the roof was leaking. The management company for the property made a “substandard fix” and the roof was never adequately repaired. At some point, Best was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. This has resulted in her fainting without warning, muscle deterioration, and loss of motor skills. In 2006, Best had to give up her job as a nurse due to the illness and was put on Social Security disability at the age of 52. As the disease progressed, Best’s memory problems became more severe. In 2012, Best requested, once again, that the Homeowner’s Association (HOA) board fix the roof of her condo. The entire HOA board quit that same year. At that point, Best took over as the HOA president and was the only board member for some time. Due to the plethora of responsibilities, Best set up automatic payments through the HOA’s account for San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E). Some of