People v. Krmpotic CA2/6

Filed 7/1/24 P. v. Krmpotic CA2/6 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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. B328167 (Super. Ct. No. 22CR08249) Plaintiff and Respondent, (Santa Barbara County)

v.

CURT JOSEPH KRMPOTIC,

Defendant and Appellant.

Curt Joseph Krmpotic appeals from the judgment after a jury convicted him of second degree robbery. (Pen. Code, §§ 211, 212.5, subd. (c).) The trial court suspended imposition of sentence and placed Krmpotic on two years of formal probation. He contends the judgment should be reversed because the court should have declared a mistrial, and there was insufficient evidence to support his conviction. We affirm. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY Early one morning in November 2022, Krmpotic went into a gas station, walked to the cooler, and took some beer. As he walked toward the door, the cashier waved his hand and said, “Hey, you

have to pay. You have to pay for the beer.” He then told Krmpotic to return the beer. Krmpotic cursed at the cashier: “Fuck you. I’m not going to pay you anything.” He then punched the cashier in the face, still holding the beer. At some point the beer fell to the ground. Krmpotic said, “Fuck you motherfucker, I’m going to fuck you up. I’m going to beat the shit out of you.” He then punched the cashier again and threw an elbow at him. The cashier was eventually able to pull Krmpotic to the ground. A woman at the gas station saw Krmpotic and the cashier fighting. She saw Krmpotic hitting the cashier and “throwing [him] around so hard.” She also heard Krmpotic’s fists hitting the cashier. The cashier told her to call 911. Two sheriff’s deputies responded to the 911 call. When they arrived, the cashier was holding Krmpotic down on the ground outside. The beer was also outside. The deputies arrested Krmpotic, who did not appear to be injured. The cashier said that he recognized Krmpotic from previous contacts at the gas station. On one prior occasion Krmpotic took a loaf of bread without paying for it. Krmpotic testified in his own defense at trial. He admitted that he had previously stolen from the gas station. He also admitted that he had previously stolen from Home Depot. Krmpotic said that on the night of the alleged robbery he rode his bicycle to the gas station to buy beer. He attempted to steal the beer but dropped it when the cashier pushed him. He then tried to leave, but the cashier would not let him. He “threw a couple lefts” at the cashier but “barely grazed him.” On rebuttal, the Home Depot security guard testified that he observed Krmpotic put pants and a sweatshirt in his backpack and