People v. Bell

Appellant Robert Bell (Robert) was convicted of 10 counts of rent skimming, 1 count of attempted rent skimming, 13 counts of forgery, 14 counts of filing a false instrument and sentenced to a term of 4 years. Appellant Cathleen Bell (Cathleen) was found guilty of eight counts of rent skimming, one count of filing a false instrument, one count of forgery and was granted probation. They appeal, raising various claims concerning the statute of limitations, instructions to the jury, suppression motions, the constitutionality of criminal rent skimming statutes and sentencing.

In this opinion we conclude California’s criminal rent skimming statute is constitutional. While rejecting numerous other claims of error, we find the jury was prejudicially misinstructed concerning the statute of limitations with regard to certain of the charges against Robert for forgery and the filing of false or forged documents. In addition we conclude the statute of limitations bars conviction for all but one count of rent skimming as to both Robert and Cathleen.

Facts

Appellants ran a rent skimming operation. Rent skimming occurs when, in the first year after acquiring residential real property,…