People v. Rafael B.D.R.

Filed 4/10/

CERTIFIED FOR PUBLICATION

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

FIRST APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION THREE

THE PEOPLE,

Plaintiff and Respondent,

A167246

v. RAFAEL B.D.R., (Alameda County Super. Ct. No. 19CR011497) Defendant and Appellant.

Defendant Rafael B.D.R. was sentenced to a six-year prison term for committing a lewd act upon a child under the age of 14 (Pen. Code, § 288, subd. (a)), and sending or exhibiting harmful matter to a minor (§ 288.2, subd. (a)(2)).1 He was convicted of committing these crimes against Jane Doe when she was 11 years old. Jane is defendant’s niece; her mother Janeth is the sister of defendant’s ex-wife, Elizabeth. On appeal, defendant contends that the trial court erred by denying his motion for a new trial based on newly discovered evidence that Elizabeth and Janeth devised a plan for Jane to falsely accuse defendant of abusing her. Because we find the trial court prejudicially erred when ruling on the new trial motion, we vacate the judgment and remand for further proceedings.

1Statutory references are to the Penal Code, unless otherwise indicated. Intending no disrespect, we use…