People v. Rodriguez CA6

I. BACKGROUND

Armed with a semi-automatic handgun borrowed from a friend earlier that day, defendant approached Miguel Rojas-Lozano at a park. Witnesses recounted that Rojas- Lozano was sitting at a table playing cards and dice when defendant tapped him on the shoulder, hit him in the face, and shot him multiple times. Rojas-Lozano was struck by nine bullets and died at the scene. A man standing nearby was shot in both feet. Defendant was charged with first degree murder. The prosecution presented evidence he went to the park to shoot Rojas-Lozano for revenge. Defendant was angry because Rojas-Lozano had groped defendant’s girlfriend at a bar the night before and when she protested, he broke a bottle over her head. Defendant offered a self-defense theory. Testifying on his own behalf, he said he went to the park to ask Rojas-Lozano to reimburse money his girlfriend lost when she was unable to work after the assault. He brought the gun because he knew Rojas-Lozano to be a dangerous person who had served time in jail and carried a gun himself, sometimes brandishing it at people. When he confronted Rojas-Lozano, defendant saw him reach into his waistband. Thinking Rojas-Lozano was…