People v. Tovar CA4/3

FACTS

Both Tovar and the victim were inmates at the Theo Lacy jail on October 13, 2019. On that date, the victim was moved into the general population from protective custody. Shortly after he entered his new cell, he was beaten by a group of other inmates, including Tovar. The incident was captured on surveillance video, which was played for the jury. The victim was transported to the emergency room at UC Irvine Medical Center (ER) following the incident. The ophthalmologist who examined and treated the victim testified the victim was conscious, but incoherent, in the ER, apparently due to being under the influence of heroin. The victim had fractures of the bones surrounding his right eye. He also had bleeding behind the eye which caused the eye to “come forward.” The doctor conducted a vision test that demonstrated the victim was not able to see any light—i.e., that he was blind in that eye. The doctor opined that “the pressure from the hemorrhage, from the bleeding,” was sufficient to cause the victim to lose vision in that eye. She explained that “whenever there’s damage to the bones or the muscles or the fat behind the eye, it can cause bleeding. So he had bleeding within…