People v. Gutierrez CA2/8

FACTS

Mother Veronica Acosta met defendant at the Ranch Market in Compton where they both worked. He moved in with her in October 2010, two or three months after they met, when he lost his job at the Ranch Market. Also in the home were mother’s children, two-and-a-half-year-old Leslie and nine-year-old Anthony. The family lived in a one bedroom apartment. The children shared the bedroom, and mother and defendant slept in the living room. Shortly after defendant moved in with the family, mother learned she was pregnant with his child. Mother worked 35 to 40 hours a week. When defendant moved in with her family, he started watching Leslie while mother worked. Mother began to notice unusual bruises on Leslie’s thighs and back. Leslie never suffered strange bruises when she was cared for by her previous babysitters, before defendant moved in with the family. Mother never saw Leslie fall in a manner that would explain the bruises. When mother asked Leslie what happened in defendant’s presence, Leslie said she had fallen. Since defendant moved in with them, Leslie’s behavior had changed; she was “a little bit more, like, quiet.”

1 All statutory references are to the Penal…