People v. Gorostiza CA5

INTRODUCTION

Appellant and defendant Elias Gorostiza has filed an appeal after he was resentenced. The parties agree the trial court erroneously imposed consecutive upper terms for two counts, and the matter must be again remanded.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND1

Defendant was charged with multiple felony offenses after he physically assaulted his then-girlfriend, C.G., on two separate occasions in July 2016. C.G failed to appear at the preliminary hearing. Prior to trial, she testified at an evidentiary hearing that she did not want to testify at trial, she did not remember anything about the two incidents, and asserted that she would similarly testify that she could not remember anything if she appeared at trial. At defendant’s jury trial, which was held in December 2016, C.G. briefly testified on direct examination that she could not remember anything about the two incidents. She then failed to appear the next day for continued examination and cross-examination; the court issued a no-bail body attachment. Despite extensive efforts by the investigators for both the People and the defense, C.G. was not located and never returned to the trial. The court found she was…