People v. Buchanan CA2/6

Facts Appellant and Jaynie Sauter lived together in an apartment in Long Beach. Sauter’s friends, Cheryl Henjum and Bruce Gillies, lived in an apartment in the same neighborhood. On December 3, 2019, Sauter appeared at their apartment “in an alarmed state.” She was “panicky and scared, frantic” and told Henjum she was “scared for her life.” Sauter was having trouble getting her words out and seemed to be afraid that something would happen to her if she went home. Henjum and Sauter went shopping and Sauter seemed to calm down. When they got back to Henjum’s apartment, however, Sauter became anxious again. She stayed with Henjum until late that night. That evening, a group of Henjum and Gillies’ friends were hanging out at their apartment. One of the women, Selwyn Powers, noticed that Sauter had a bad cut on her leg. Another guest, Angel Walkington, noticed that Sauter had a black eye that appeared to be a few days old. No one saw Sauter using alcohol or illegal drugs that night. At one point, one of the guests accused Powers of stealing money. Gillies told her to leave. Powers gathered her things and left the apartment. She rode her bicycle down an alleyway behind the building in…