People v. Orozco CA4/2

BACKGROUND

On September 22, 2021, a supervisor at Home Depot saw Orozco walk out of the

store without paying for a table saw. The supervisor testified that he confronted Orozco

and asked him for a receipt, and Orozco refused to provide one. According to the

supervisor, Orozco pushed a shopping cart toward him, which made the supervisor fear

for his safety. When the supervisor pulled out his phone to call the police, Orozco lunged

at him to try to take his phone. The supervisor said he let Orozco leave with the table

saw because he was concerned for his safety. At trial, Orozco denied threatening or

otherwise being violent to the supervisor, but admitted to leaving the store without paying

for the table saw.

In January 2022 the Riverside County District Attorney filed a complaint against

Orozco charging him with robbery (Pen. Code § 211)2 and attempted interference with a

wireless communication device. (§§ 664, 591.5) Orozco waived formal arraignment on

August 31, 2022, less than a year after he stole the table saw. In February 2024 the

1 People v. Wende (1979) 25 Cal.3d 436 (Wende); Anders v. California (1967) 386 U.S. 738 (Anders). 2 Unlabeled statutory citations…