Valdez

*310 A jury convicted defendant and appellant Raymond James Valdez of gassing in violation of Penal Code section 243.9(a). 1 Valdez had spit in the face and at the upper chest of a sheriff's deputy-covering her face with saliva-as deputies were returning him to the lockup from a courtroom. Valdez argues the courtroom was not a "local detention facility" within the meaning of the statute. We disagree. We therefore affirm Valdez's conviction.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

1. Valdez spits in a deputy's face in a courtroom

On March 11, 2016, Valdez was transported to a Los Angeles County courthouse for a pretrial proceeding in a case the district attorney's office had filed *136 against him. 2 The courthouse had a lockup with four or five cells. The lockup was connected to the courtroom, separated by a hallway and two locked doors. Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Deputy Sherry Parriott and two other deputies were working as bailiffs in the court. Valdez was handcuffed. He was sitting right outside of the lockup-"right at the door" to the lockup-next to his attorney. The courtroom was very small.

When Valdez's court appearance was over, Parriott told him to stand up and…