Criminal Law

6th District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law

People v. Anderson — CalECPA does not require suppression of phone evidence when officers reasonably relied on consent from deceased suspect’s mother

automatic / March 13, 2026

Sixth District holds that even if a search of a deceased suspect's phone violated the California Electronic Communications Privacy Act, suppression is not required because officers acted in good-faith reliance on the mother's consent.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law

People v. Valencia — Hot pursuit and the safety of family members justified warrantless entry that led to standoff and officer’s death

automatic / March 10, 2026

Second District affirms convictions for the murder of a Pomona police officer and a separate assault, holding that hot pursuit and concern for family members justified the warrantless entry, but remands to correct determinate-term sentencing under Penal Code section 1170.1.

1st District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law

People v. Uceda — Murder conviction affirmed but drive-by shooting conviction reversed for failure to instruct on lesser included offense

automatic / March 5, 2026

First District affirms a murder conviction but reverses a drive-by shooting conviction because the trial court failed to instruct the jury on grossly negligent discharge of a firearm as a lesser included offense.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law

People v. Nelson — Trial court’s denial of mental health diversion is reviewed deferentially; concurring justice criticizes contrary Fourth District opinion

automatic / March 5, 2026

Second District affirms denial of mental health diversion under Penal Code section 1001.36, with a notable concurrence sharply criticizing a recent Fourth District decision that overturned a similar denial.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law

People v. Superior Court (Taylor) — Mental health diversion requires evidence the defendant will actually comply with treatment, not just willingness

automatic / March 5, 2026

Second District grants writ vacating mental health diversion in a violent hate-crime case, holding that the trial court must consider evidence of past treatment noncompliance when applying the public safety prong of Penal Code section 1001.36.

California Supreme Court, Criminal Law

People v. Morgan — Assault Is Not a Lesser Included Offense of Resisting an Officer by Force or Violence

automatic / February 26, 2026

The California Supreme Court holds that assault is not a lesser included offense of resisting an officer by force or violence under Penal Code section 69, because resistance does not require the present ability to inflict harm.

5th District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law

People v. Gonzalez — Trial Court Properly Used Aggravating Factors Tied to Prior Convictions for Upper-Term Sentence; Strike Vacated After Fletcher

automatic / February 26, 2026

Fifth District holds (on transfer from the California Supreme Court) that trial courts may impose upper-term sentences based on California Rules of Court rule 4.421(b) factors derived from prior convictions, but vacates the prior-strike finding under People v. Fletcher.

4th District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law, Family Law, Litigation

J.S. v. D.A. — Trial Court Again Erred by Issuing DVRO Without Addressing Incarcerated Respondent’s Request to Appear by Phone

automatic / February 25, 2026

Fourth District reverses a five-year DVRO for the second time, holding the trial court again denied the incarcerated respondent meaningful access to the courts by issuing the order without addressing his request to appear telephonically.

4th District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law, Family Law

In re Christian V. — Amended Juvenile Restitution Statute Did Not Apply Retroactively Where Minor’s Case Became Final Before the Effective Date

automatic / February 24, 2026

Fourth District affirms a juvenile court's joint-and-several restitution order, holding the January 2025 amendment to Welfare and Institutions Code section 730.6 — which replaced joint-and-several liability with several liability based on percentage of fault — does not apply retroactively to a case that became final before the amendment took effect.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

In re Lynex — Racial Justice Act Petitioner Entitled to Counsel on a ‘Plausible Allegation’ Standard, Not a Prima Facie Showing

automatic / February 19, 2026

Second District grants writ of mandate, holding that an indigent petitioner under California's Racial Justice Act must show only a 'plausible allegation' of a violation to obtain counsel — not a prima facie showing of entitlement to relief — and may amend his petition to meet that standard.

4th District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law, Litigation

People v. T.B. — ‘Less Onerous Alternatives’ to Court-Ordered ECT Means Medical Alternatives, Not Surrogate-Consent Procedures

automatic / February 18, 2026

Fourth District affirms a trial court order authorizing electroconvulsive therapy for an incarcerated patient with treatment-resistant schizoaffective disorder, holding that 'no less onerous alternatives' under Penal Code section 2679(b) refers to medical alternatives, not surrogate-consent procedures.

4th District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law, Litigation

Flareau v. Superior Court — Trial Court Abused ‘Residual’ Discretion to Deny Mental-Health Diversion Without Proper Analysis

automatic / February 18, 2026

Fourth District grants writ relief, holding that a Riverside County trial court abused its 'residual' discretion under Penal Code section 1001.36 by denying mental-health diversion without proper analysis of the statute's eligibility and suitability criteria.

4th District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law

People v. Gutierrez — Tree-Mortality State of Emergency Was Not Statewide; Arson Sentence Enhancement Requires Proof Fire Was in a Designated Hazard Zone

automatic / February 17, 2026

Fourth District affirms a felony arson conviction but reverses the state-of-emergency sentencing enhancement, holding the 2015 tree-mortality emergency proclamation did not extend statewide and the prosecution failed to prove the fire was in a designated hazard zone.

1st District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law, Litigation

People v. Alston — Conviction Reversed Where Trial Court Failed to Explain Reasons for Overruling Section 231.7 Objection to Peremptory Strike

automatic / February 13, 2026

First District reverses an attempted-lewd-act conviction, holding the trial court violated Code of Civil Procedure section 231.7(d)(1) by failing to explain its reasons for overruling defense counsel's objection to the prosecutor's peremptory strike of a prospective juror.

4th District Court of Appeal, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

Anaheim Police Dept. v. Crockett — Gun Violence Restraining Order Properly Issued Against Father Whose Son Threatened a School Shooting

automatic / February 13, 2026

Fourth District affirms a Gun Violence Restraining Order against a father whose adult son with a documented mental-health history threatened a mass shooting at a local high school, holding the order survives Second Amendment, vagueness, and overbreadth challenges.

1st District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law

People v. Flores — Electronics-Search Probation Condition Upheld for Defendant Who Used VOIP and Text to Sell Fentanyl Pills

automatic / February 11, 2026

First District affirms a probation condition allowing warrantless electronics searches as imposed on a defendant who used VOIP and text-message accounts to coordinate the sale of 1,000 fentanyl pills.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law

People v. Diaz — Section 1172.6 Resentencing Unavailable for Direct Aider and Abettor of Murder Who Acted With Intent to Kill

automatic / February 11, 2026

Second District affirms denial of section 1172.6 resentencing relief for a defendant convicted of four counts of first-degree murder, holding she remained guilty under current law as a direct aider and abettor with intent to kill — a theory that survived Senate Bill 1437.

4th District Court of Appeal, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

People v. Zapata — Confession to Undercover ‘Perkins’ Operatives Inadmissible When Suspect Had Invoked Right to Counsel

automatic / February 10, 2026

Fourth District reverses a second-degree-murder conviction, holding that statements obtained from a defendant during an undercover Perkins operation were inadmissible under Miranda because the suspect had invoked his right to counsel and a known law-enforcement officer continued to 'stimulate' the operation in a manner that amounted to custodial interrogation.

1st District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law

In re J.C. — Brandishing an Imitation Firearm Does Not Trigger Penal Code’s Firearm Prohibition for Juvenile Offenders

automatic / February 9, 2026

First District holds that brandishing an imitation firearm under Penal Code section 417.4 is not among the offenses that trigger the juvenile-firearm ban under Penal Code section 29820, and vacates that probation condition.

4th District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law, Litigation

Esparza v. Superior Court — LPS Grave-Disability Finding Is Not Equivalent to Incompetence to Testify Under Evidence Code Section 701

automatic / February 5, 2026

Fourth District grants writ relief, holding that a probate court's grave-disability finding under the LPS Act does not establish that the person is incompetent to testify under Evidence Code section 701, which requires its own determination.

4th District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law

People v. Gomez — Prosecutor’s ‘Dog and Slushy’ Analogy About Circumstantial Evidence Did Not Violate the Racial Justice Act

automatic / February 4, 2026

Fourth District affirms convictions but remands for resentencing in a vehicle-theft case, holding the prosecutor's and defense counsel's use of a 'dog drinking a slushy' analogy to explain circumstantial evidence did not violate the Racial Justice Act.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

People v. Heaps — UCLA Gynecologist’s Convictions Reversed Where Trial Court’s Ex Parte Communications With Jury Deprived Defendant of Counsel

automatic / February 2, 2026

Second District reverses convictions of former UCLA gynecologic oncologist James Heaps, holding the trial court's ex parte communications with the jury through a judicial assistant — without notifying counsel — deprived defendant of counsel at a critical stage and the prosecution failed to prove the error was harmless.

California Supreme Court, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

Sellers v. Superior Court — Loose Marijuana Crumbs on a Car Floor Are Not an Open Container and Cannot Justify a Vehicle Search

automatic / January 29, 2026

The California Supreme Court holds that a small amount of loose marijuana scattered on a car floor is not an open container under state law and does not give police probable cause to search the vehicle.

5th District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law

People v. Dixon — Grand Jury Transcripts and Police Reports Are Not Admissible at Section 1172.6 Evidentiary Hearings

automatic / January 26, 2026

Fifth District holds that grand jury transcripts and police reports are not within section 1172.6(d)(3)'s hearsay exception and were inadmissible at the petitioner's section 1172.6 evidentiary hearing, vacating the denial and remanding for a new hearing.

4th District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law, Litigation

Siam v. Superior Court — Trial Court Erred in Denying Mental-Health Diversion by Overriding Sole Expert and Relying on Unsupported Findings

automatic / January 26, 2026

Fourth District grants writ relief, holding that an Orange County trial court applied the wrong legal standard and relied on findings unsupported by substantial evidence when denying mental-health pretrial diversion to a defendant diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia.