People v. Mendez CA2/2

FACTS

Prosecution Evidence On the morning of April 19, 2012, police officers responding to a call found the body of Jamie Abuawad outside his SUV parked on West 81st Street in Los Angeles. Abuawad died of multiple gunshot wounds. Abuawad was in the business of buying gold. He employed two women to pass out his business cards on the street and house to house in various Los Angeles neighborhoods. Abuawad would respond to telephone calls from potential sellers of gold by immediately driving to meet them. He would pay cash for the gold he bought.

All further references to statutes are to the Penal Code unless stated otherwise.

2 A resident of West 81st Street testified at trial that he noticed a young man sitting on a wall outside his residence at approximately 11:00 a.m. on the day of the shooting. The resident removed his trash cans from the street and went back inside his home. Later, he looked outside and saw the young man talking on the phone. The resident went back inside and shortly thereafter heard two or three gunshots in rapid succession. He went outside and saw Abuawad lying on the ground. The resident described the young man he had seen on the wall as being…