People v. Guerra CA3

BACKGROUND

Defendant and M.V. began dating in 2015. Over the next year, M.V. made numerous trips from her home in Los Angeles to defendant’s home in Stockton. The trips generally lasted around weeks, and sometimes included visits to defendant’s parents’ home in Fairfield. The People’s case i. M.V.’s testimony In May 2016, M.V. was in Stockton with defendant but decided to return to Los Angeles earlier than originally planned, because defendant had grabbed her by the neck. Though defendant had slapped M.V. before, she was disturbed by this escalation in violence. On Sunday May 22, 2016, M.V. drove defendant to his job at a taco truck, left to buy a train ticket for Los Angeles and to pack her things, and then drove back to the taco truck to give defendant his car and car keys. M.V. called for a taxi, and asked the driver to meet her at the taco truck so that she could leave as soon as she gave defendant his car keys. M.V. parked defendant’s car across the street from the taco truck, walked up to the taco truck, and then called out to defendant, who left the truck to talk with her. M.V. told

2 defendant she was there to give him his car keys because she was returning to Los…