People v. Leon CA4/2

BACKGROUND

Jane Doe met defendant through a mutual friend, and began seeing him in 2011.

Defendant and Doe began cohabiting in May 2011, but the relationship was rocky. One

problem was the language barrier, since Doe spoke little Spanish, while defendant spoke

little English. Using a translation application on a Smartphone aided in communication.

They broke up and reconciled a few times, and had arguments arising from defendant’s

jealousy.

On September 24, 2012, the two had broken up but were working on their

relationship. Defendant had just gotten a new job and maintained a residence in Lake

Elsinore, but had also moved back in with Doe. That day, Doe had taken defendant to

work but was not sure if she was supposed to pick him up after work or if his new

employer would drop him off. That night, defendant had called her but she did not

receive the call because she was distracted by an unexpected visitor. The visitor was

George Lopez, a man Doe had known for 37 years and had dated for approximately two

years. Lopez arrived at about 9:00 p.m. Lopez and Doe talked and had a few drinks,

which was awkward for Doe because defendant was expected to arrive soon, and…