People v. Wilde CA3

BACKGROUND

Defendant’s 82-year-old mother traveled to Japan in May 2012. During the trip she learned that her checking account containing $5,000 had been depleted. The mother had not given defendant or anyone else permission to draw checks on her account. Upon her return, she closed the account and opened a new one. Auburn Police Detective Jerry Johnson interviewed the mother, who reported that defendant had been taking money from her for several years. During his investigation, Detective Johnson discovered four checks in which the mother’s signature appeared to be forged. When he asked her about the checks, she explained that defendant had taken the checks from a closet in her residence while she was in Japan. Defendant admitted to Detective Johnson that he had taken the checks and had signed them because he needed money for drugs and gambling while his mother was away. While defendant was incarcerated after his arrest, he spoke by telephone with his girlfriend and some of their conversations were recorded. The jury heard recordings of some of the conversations and received transcripts of the recordings. During the conversations, defendant urged his girlfriend to contact the…