People v. Pettress CA4/2

BACKGROUND

The events leading up to defendant’s petition for resentencing are taken from our

opinion issued in her appeal from the judgment. (People v. Pettress (July 21, 2014,

E056585 [nonpub. opn.].) A copy of the opinion is included in the record on appeal.

In March 1995, three-year-old T. and his four siblings were removed from their

parents’ custody. They were placed in the home of defendant and her husband,

Lafayette, with oversight by Child Protective Services. Defendant is the children’s

paternal aunt.

One evening nine months later, defendant and Lafayette ordered pizza but forbade

T. and his older brother from having any because they had gotten into trouble. The next

morning, T. ate a piece of pizza. In response, defendant dragged him into the bathroom

and told him to spit up the pizza. When he failed to do so, defendant stomped on his

stomach, then put him over the toilet and told him again to spit up the pizza. Defendant

repeated that process twice more until T. went limp. Lafayette had a clear view of what

was happening, but did not intervene. Two of T.’s sisters, nine-year-old Evelyn and six-

year-old J. also saw what defendant did to T. After…