People v. Perez CA6

I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

A. Procedural History On August 18, 2021, the San Benito County District Attorney filed a complaint charging Perez with sexual penetration by a foreign object of victim Jane Doe, who was unconscious at the time of the offense, with this fact being known to Perez (§ 289, subd. (d)(1); count 1). Following a preliminary hearing on April 8, 2022, the complaint was subsequently “deemed [an] information.” On March 30, 2023, following a three-day jury trial, Perez was found guilty of the offense as charged. On January 11, 2024, the trial court denied Perez’s motion for a new trial. The trial court sentenced Perez to the lower term of three years in prison, with execution of the sentence to be suspended, and placed Perez on formal probation for three years. As a condition of Perez’s probation, the trial court ordered Perez to register as a lifetime sexual offender pursuant to section 290. Perez timely appealed. B. Factual Background 1. Prosecution’s Case a. Testimony of Jane Doe i. Events Leading Up to the Assault On August 14, 2021, Jane Doe hosted her birthday party at her home in Hollister. In attendance were various family members,…