People v. Fernandez CA6

I. Background

Defendant was born in 1961. His daughter Jane was born in August 1985. When Jane was five years old, defendant “caressed” her naked bottom and thighs “very inappropriately.” She noticed that he was “breathing hard” while he was doing this. Jane told her mother that defendant had “touched” her on her “behind,” and she was “hurting” when she sat down. Jane’s mother confronted defendant, but he denied touching Jane. Jane’s mother saw redness on Jane that looked like a rash. When Jane was around six years old, Jane’s mother noticed that a pair of Jane’s underwear had a dried up yellowish substance on them that looked and smelled like semen. She asked defendant about this substance, and he denied any knowledge about it. When Jane was seven years old, defendant began getting into bed with her and molesting her. He would pull down his pants and hers, lie on top of her, put his fingers inside of her vagina, and put his penis in her vagina. Defendant told her that it was “a very normal thing” for a father to sleep with his daughter. Jane cried because his actions hurt her, but she was afraid of him. A few times she bit his hand to try to stop him. Jane tried removing his…