Albertini v. Acebo-Houlihan

• Decision Date: 04 November 2021
• Docket Number: D077391
• Parties: GREGORY ALBERTINI et al., Plaintiffs, Cross-defendants and Appellants, v. ANNE ACEBO-HOULIHAN, Defendant, Cross-complainant and Respondent, JESSE HOULIHAN, Defendant and Respondent.
• Court: California Court of Appeals Court of Appeals

GREGORY ALBERTINI et al., Plaintiffs, Cross-defendants and Appellants,
v.
ANNE ACEBO-HOULIHAN, Defendant, Cross-complainant and Respondent,

JESSE HOULIHAN, Defendant and Respondent.

D077391

California Court of Appeals, Fourth District, First Division

November 4, 2021

NOT TO BE PUBLISHED

APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of San Diego County, No. 37-2018-0003732-CU-NP-NC Robert P. Dahlquist, Judge. Affirmed.

Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith and Lann G. Mclntyre, Peter L. Garchie for Plaintiffs, Cross-defendants and Appellants.

Gregory M. Garrison and Kevin Thomas Rhine for Defendants, Cross-complainant and Respondents.

O'ROURKE, J.

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Plaintiffs, cross-defendants and appellants Gregory Albertini and Catherine Albertini appeal from a judgment entered on their complaint against defendants and respondents Anne Acebo-Houlihan and Jesse Houlihan, and on Acebo-Houlihan's cross-complaint arising out of disputes over the parties' adjoining homes. ^[1] A jury awarded Acebo-Houlihan $500, 000 in past and future economic and noneconomic damages on her cross-complaint's claims for nuisance and trespass; after a separate bench trial the court granted injunctive relief in Acebo-Houlihan's favor.

The Albertinis contend: (1) no evidence supports the jury's economic damages award; (2) the economic damages award is duplicative and includes future damages that Acebo-Houlihan did not seek; (3) the evidence is insufficient to support a finding of trespass or nuisance; and (4) the judgment is the result of an unfair jury trial. We reject these contentions and affirm the judgment.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUNDS^[2]

The Albertinis and Acebo-Houlihan are owners of adjoining homes in Cardiff by the Sea. In 1987, Acebo-Houlihan and her late husband purchased their home, which has a lagoon and white water ocean view. The Albertinis moved into their unit in 2012. Acebo-Houlihan and her now husband Jesse

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Houlihan reside permanently elsewhere; Acebo-Houlihan used her house on weekends and for family vacations.

Disputes arose between the parties, and in 2018, the Albertinis sued the Houlihans for waste, trespass, nuisance, and breach of covenants, conditions and restrictions (CC&Rs) allegedly governing the properties. In part, the Albertinis alleged the Houlihans damaged common areas, diverted or interfered with utility connections, and tampered with electrical lines and equipment. The Albertinis additionally sought injunctive and declaratory relief.

Acebo-Houlihan filed a cross-complaint against the Albertinis seeking damages for waste, trespass, nuisance, breach of the CC&Rs, restitution and declaratory relief. She alleged, among other things, that the Albertinis had connected their washing machine to her separate water supply line and also watered landscaping for both units from water solely from lines connected and billed to her unit. Further, though the Houlihans later shut off the water to their unit while away and even removed the handle to the shutoff valve, they discovered that it was being turned back on when they were gone. Acebo-Houlihan alleged she sent a cease and desist letter to the Albertinis, but they continued to trespass on the Houlihans' property and access their electric panel and plumbing. She alleged the Albertinis capped off all of the sprinklers to her front landscaping so that the Houlihans had to pay a landscaper to water by hand. She alleged in part that the Albertinis' conduct had permanently diminished and depreciated the market value of her unit, and that she suffered other damages including the loss of ability to sell it, emotional distress, and expenses associated with repairs and investigations.

The matter proceeded to a jury trial on the parties' respective claims, with the Albertinis representing themselves. Days before trial, the court

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repeatedly admonished the Albertinis that if they did not exchange exhibits with opposing counsel or provide them to the court in advance of trial, they would likely not be able to introduce them during the trial. On the day of jury selection, the Albertinis advised the court they would not be exchanging exhibits with opposing counsel or providing them to the court, stating they would use any exhibits for impeachment. The court again advised the Albertinis that as a general rule they would be prohibited from admitting any exhibits into evidence; that it was highly likely they would not be able to use any exhibits during the trial even while questioning witnesses. The Houlihans' counsel presented the Albertinis with two general verdict forms; the court asked the Albertinis if they had comments or objections on them and both advised the court they did not.

During trial, the Albertinis took the position in part that they had entered common area space as defined in the properties' CC&Rs. For example, Catherine Albertini testified she accessed an area above Acebo-Houlihan's garage by cutting a hole on her side of the garage, stating that "[t]he garage attics are common area."

Acebo-Houlihan testified that from the time she purchased her property in 1987, she had never been aware of any homeowners association or rules governing its use. She historically paid the expenses for her half of the property, including for roofing. Describing her house as a "really a sanctuary," Acebo-Houlihan recounted how she loved going there to relax and

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spend time with family. ^[3] Acebo-Houlihan described some of the things that happened after the Albertinis moved in. She testified that Catherine Albertini had turned off breakers to Acebo-Houlihan's house, leaving her alarm disabled and house unsecured, and pried on a water shut-off valve that Acebo-Houlihan had turned off while away from her property. The breaker box was in an area that only the Albertinis could access. After their panel was breached, Jesse Houlihan put a lock on it. Catherine Albertini also put a lock on the breaker box so Acebo-Houlihan could not access it. She refused to provide Acebo-Houlihan or her counsel with the combination.

Acebo-Houlihan testified that the Albertinis parked their camper van constantly in front of her house, blocking her gate and making it difficult for contractors to enter or care for her front yard. The van posed a tripping hazard due to sprinkler placement. In 2016, she discovered that the Albertinis' washing machine was connected to her unit's water supply. Acebo-Houlihan eventually turned her water supply off, but would find it turned back on while she and her husband were gone. The Albertinis did not correct the situation until June 2017, after Acebo-Houlihan sent a cease and desist letter.

Acebo-Houlihan testified that in September 2017, she discovered that her sprinklers had been capped off by Catherine Albertini. At some point, Acebo-Houlihan installed cameras on her property, which on several

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occasions caught Catherine Albertini opening the breaker box and shutting off her power, damaging a plant in Acebo-Houlihan's front yard, and vandalizing a sprinkler. They also caught Gregory Albertini peering into their window and front door, at times holding an electromagnetic device. Catherine Albertini trained a spotlight on Acebo-Houlihan's driveway, and also placed spotlights on Acebo-Houlihan's property trained at other neighbors. The Albertinis parked their camper van in Acebo-Houlihan's driveway. According to Acebo-Houlihan, the Albertinis' invasions were "constant" and "stressful."

Acebo-Houlihan explained how the Albertinis' conduct changed her relationship with her Cardiff home: "A place that I have loved going to for 25, 26 years, where I used to get off on Manchester, and I would have butterflies going to this place that I just loved. It's now-you know what, it's become a living nightmare. I don't like going there anymore. I don't enjoy it. I love the property. I love Cardiff. I don't feel comfortable there. I don't feel safe there. [¶] ... [¶] When I get off the freeway now, I get anxiety, ... I get knots in my stomach as I'm pulling around the lagoon because I don't know what I'm going to. Maybe I haven't been there in three weeks. Are my sprinklers going to be capped? Is [Catherine Albertini] going to be crawling around in my attic above my garage? Is my landscape getting ripped out? You know, is my water pried on again? [¶] ... [¶] I mean, it's a living nightmare." She testified the Albertinis were "creeping around my front door, looking in my kitchen window . . . ."

Acebo-Houlihan's counsel asked whether it was fair to say Acebo-Houlihan did not go to the house as often. She replied: "O[h], I never go there as often. And this is my biggest investment I've had since I was 30 years old. I was going to retire there. And I'm going to have to sell it. I need

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to get out because my health and my husband's health is more important. And you know what, I had one husband die. I'm not going to risk my other husband. I'm going to take a huge loss. I've talked to realtors, and I'm going to take a 2- to $300, 000 loss because I need to disclose what these people do. Can you imagine if you're somebody writing a letter to a neighbor saying that 'Anne Houlihan is going to try to electrocute me in my sleep [?'] I mean, I can't live next door to somebody like that. It's going to break my heart because, it's great because it has a low tax basis. Once I get something else, it's just way out of our league because of property taxes and stuff. This is like the loss of a dream. I have my mother and my family coming next month. I have a brother coming here that's never been to California. I can't take them to Cardiff because I don't feel safe there, so why would I expose my family to that. I've thought about renting it. The place across the street rents for $5, 000 a month or [$]5, 700. But I can't rent it. How could I put tenants into that? I couldn't do that. My conscience wouldn't let me."

Counsel...