People v. Padilla CA2/2

FACTS

The victim, 17-year-old student Jaime Castellanos, lived in the Maravilla housing project. He weighed 125 pounds and had no training in martial arts or boxing. His two tattoos bore the names of his father and aunt. Castellanos and appellant did not know each other. However, they each knew Alicia Tello. Appellant and Tello, both 18, were in a dating relationship since 2019. Tello lived in Maravilla. Appellant lived 14 miles from Maravilla. Appellant saw Tello daily, they often communicated by messaging, and he would sneak into her house at night to sleep with her. They hung out on the Maravilla playground, near the slide. They tattooed each other’s initials on their ring fingers, and planned to marry. Tello testified that appellant did not carry a knife or weapon for protection, nor did he have problems with or fear anyone at Maravilla. She initially claimed that he was not obsessed, controlling, jealous, or threatening with her. He never

2 showed up unexpectedly, without first telling her his plans. They shared passwords to their social media accounts. They had “location sharing” on their cell phones, so appellant always knew Tello’s whereabouts. Tello and appellant had a…