People v. Yath CA1/2

BACKGROUND

On December 2, 2021, Jesus Rivas-Reynoso called the Santa Rosa police and said he was following his Honda Civic, which had been stolen. An officer was dispatched and initiated a traffic stop when the vehicle parked. The driver, Yath, said he had borrowed the car from “Jose.” A records check revealed Yath had an active misdemeanor warrant and he was arrested. Rivas-Reynosa said he had never met Yath, who did not have permission to take the car. The key in the ignition was for a Saturn rather than a Honda and the ignition cylinder was loose within the steering column; it appeared the Saturn key had been forced into the ignition in order to drive the car. A complaint filed on December 10, 2021, charged Yath with three offenses committed on or about December 2, 2021: felony driving or taking a vehicle (1998 Honda) without consent (Veh. Code, § 10851, subd. (a)) (count 1), felony receiving stolen property (1998 Honda) (Pen. Code, § 496d, subd. (a)) (count 2), and misdemeanor possession of burglar’s tools (id., § 466.) (count 3). In connection with counts 1 and 2, it was alleged that Yath had three prior automobile theft-related convictions (id., § 666.5), two for violating…