People v. Castle CA3

BACKGROUND

The second amended information charged defendant with four counts of lewd conduct on a child [counts one through four] (Pen. Code, § 288, subd. (a))1 and one count of rape [count five] (§ 261, subd. (a)(2)). The information further alleged factors in aggravation not relevant here. Jane Doe was 12 years old at the time of the offenses in 2019.2 She lived in a homeless shelter with her mother. Defendant was about 31 years old at the time. He befriended Jane Doe and her mother and Jane Doe thought of him as an older brother. In January or February of 2019, Jane Doe and her mother were staying in a hotel. After all the adults left their hotel room, defendant returned to the room to get something. Jane Doe was in the hotel room alone. Defendant pushed Jane Doe up against a wall, kissed her on the mouth, and placed his tongue in her mouth. Jane Doe testified that happened other times in that hotel room. On cross-examination, Jane Doe also testified that an incident occurred about a day and a half after the first kissing incident while she was outside the hotel “messing around with a tree and just being a kid.” Defendant came up to Jane Doe and she walked away. Defendant…