People v. Rivera CA1/3

BACKGROUND

Rivera and Lauren Anzalone became engaged in December 2012 after a brief courtship. Anzalone soon began to harbor doubts about their relationship, largely due to Rivera’s jealousy and possessiveness. In mid-April 2013 she voiced her concerns to Rivera. She tried to give back her engagement ring, but he became angry and she continued to wear the ring to assuage him. Soon afterward she stopped wearing the ring, explaining to Rivera that she was unhappy in the relationship and that his jealousy was a problem. On April 26 Anzalone texted Rivera not to pick her up at the restaurant where she worked, as he usually did, because she was going out with some coworkers. Anzalone, Claudio Aramburu, and several other coworkers finished work at midnight and went to a

1 bar called the Wreck Room. As they left around 1:30 a.m., Aramburu and Anzalone were walking with their arms around each other when “out of nowhere” Rivera ran up from behind and hit Aramburu on the back of his head, knocking him to the ground. Rivera kicked Aramburu two or three times as Anzalone screamed at him to stop. She pushed Rivera toward his car and the two drove off together as Anzalone’s coworkers rushed…