Trier of Fact Cases In California

In People v. Mendoza (1997) 59 Cal.App.4th 1333, the trier of fact properly considered evidence that 30 minutes after the threat " 'you fucked up my brother's testimony. I'm going to talk to some guys from Happy Town,' " members of the defendant's gang parked their car in front of the victim's home and honked their horn to gain her attention. ( Mendoza, supra, 59 Cal.App.4th at pp. 1337, 1340-1342.) In People v. Brooks (1994) 26 Cal.App.4th 142, the trier of fact properly considered evidence that a couple of weeks after the defendant said, " 'If you go to court and testify, I'll kill you. There's nowhere you can go that I won't be able to find you,' " the defendant accompanied by gang members pushed the victim against a car, put a gun in her mouth, and threatened to kill her right then and there. ( Id. at p. 144.) In People v. Dias (1997) 52 Cal.App.4th 46, the trier of fact properly considered evidence that that after calling his ex-wife and telling her that if she did not stop dating her boyfriend he would have to " 'terminate' " her, the defendant appeared at the boyfriend's door and pointed a fully loaded firearm at him with the hammer cocked, stating, " 'I kept telling you and telling you, but you wouldn't listen to me, and so now I'm gonna have to kill both of you.' " ( Id. at p. 49.) In People v. Butler (2000) 85 Cal.App.4th 745, the trier of fact properly considered evidence that after calling the victim " 'a fucking bitch' " and telling her to mind her own business or she " 'was going to get hurt,' " the defendant then forcibly entered the victim's home, knocked down her young daughter, and committed an assault with a knife upon another person present. ( Id. at pp. 749, 755.)