People v. Matthew W. (In re Matthew W.)

• Decision Date: 08 July 2021
• Docket Number: A159931
• Citation: 66 Cal.App.5th 392,281 Cal.Rptr.3d 156
• Court: California Court of Appeals Court of Appeals
• Parties: IN RE MATTHEW W., a Person Coming Under the Juvenile Court Law. The People, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. Matthew W., Defendant and Appellant.

66 Cal.App.5th 392

281 Cal.Rptr.3d 156

IN RE MATTHEW W., a Person Coming Under the Juvenile Court Law.

The People, Plaintiff and Respondent,

v.Matthew W., Defendant and Appellant.

A159931

Court of Appeal, First District, Division 2, California.

Filed July 8, 2021

Attorney for Defendant and Appellant: By Appointment of the Court of Appeal First District Appellate Project, Tony L. Cheng, Youth Defender Clinic, A Clinic of the UC Berkeley School of Law.

Attorneys for Plaintiff and Respondent: Attorney General of California, Xavier Becerra, Lance E. Winters, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Jeffrey M. Laurence, Senior Assistant Attorney General, Katie L. Stowe, Deputy Attorney General, Elizabeth W. Hereford, Deputy Attorney General.

Kline, P.J. Defendant Matthew W. appeals from the juvenile court's jurisdictional findings and dispositional order, in which the court sustained an allegation of assault with a deadly weapon and placed defendant on probation with various terms and conditions. On appeal, defendant contends the jurisdictional findings must be reversed because the juvenile court (1) improperly admitted defendant's pre-arrest statements to police made during a custodial interrogation, in violation of Miranda v. Arizona (1966) 384 U.S. 436, 86 S.Ct. 1602, 16 L.Ed.2d 694 ( Miranda ), and (2) failed to fully consider all of the evidence admitted at the jurisdictional hearing, which led it to misapply the standard of proof beyond a reasonable doubt. He also contends the court improperly imposed an electronic search condition of probation, which must be stricken.

We conclude that defendant's pre-arrest statements to police were made during a custodial interrogation without the required Miranda advisements, and that the erroneous admission of evidence of those statements at the jurisdictional hearing prejudiced defendant. We shall therefore reverse the court's jurisdictional findings and dispositional order.

PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

On January 22, 2020, the Napa County District Attorney filed a juvenile wardship petition pursuant to Welfare and Institutions Code section 602, subdivision (a), alleging that defendant had committed assault with a deadly weapon ( Pen. Code, § 245, subd. (a)(1) —count one),¹ and assault by means likely to produce great bodily injury ( § 245, subd. (a)(4) —count two). The petition further alleged, as to count one, that defendant had personally inflicted great bodily injury on the victim (§ 12022.7, subd. (a)), and, as to count two, that he had caused the victim to suffer great bodily injury resulting in paralysis (§ 12022.7, subd. (b)) and had personally used a deadly weapon, a knife (§ 12202, subd. (b)(1)).

On February 19, 2020, following a contested jurisdictional hearing, the juvenile court found true all of the allegations in the petition except for the paralysis enhancement. The court subsequently dismissed count two and the accompanying enhancement, at the request of the prosecutor.

On March 4, 2020, at the dispositional hearing, the court declared defendant a ward of the court and placed him on probation with various terms and conditions, including an electronic search condition.

On March 17, 2020, defendant filed a notice of appeal.

FACTUAL BACKGROUND

Prosecution Case

Ralph C.,² the stabbing victim, testified that on January 21, 2020, approximately 12:30 or 1:00 a.m., he was pushing his bike northbound on Main Street in Napa. He was on the way to a Seven-Eleven store after having dinner with a friend who lived nearby when a young man—subsequently identified as defendant's friend, Andrew G.—ran out from behind a fence next to a car and almost ran into him. Ralph, who thought Andrew might be breaking into the car, asked, " ‘What are you doin?’ " Andrew, who appeared stressed, said, " ‘I live here,’ " before running across the street. Ralph thought he "was being bullshitted" and that he had caught Andrew breaking into the car and then running away. Ralph therefore chased him down the street from about 100 yards behind, with his flashlight on.

Ralph then noticed a Mustang automobile flashing its lights at the end of the block, and he got onto his bike to continue chasing Andrew. As he followed him past the car, Ralph looked inside the car with his flashlight and saw the outline of a person in the driver's seat. Ralph then caught up with Andrew. He got off his bike and, holding his bike in one hand and his flashlight in the other, asked Andrew why he was running and what was going on, but did not recall receiving any response. The two of them were less than five feet apart, with Ralph's bike between them. He never pushed or threatened Andrew.

Ralph then heard someone scream from behind him, " ‘Leave my friend alone.’ " Ralph dropped his bike, turned around, and saw someone in a hooded sweater. That person—later identified as defendant—threw a punch at Ralph before running to his Mustang. The punch felt like "a little nudge on the side." Ralph then realized that he had been stabbed and that his jacket was filling up with blood, which was starting to drip. He caught a glimpse of the knife defendant was carrying; it looked like a "fillet knife," curved and about nine inches long with a wooden handle. He screamed, " ‘He fuckin’ stabbed me.’ "

Ralph testified that he is an alcoholic and drinks a fifth of vodka every day. He had been drinking several hours before the incident, and had imbibed a few glasses of wine and a couple of shots of Jack Daniels. But he was not drunk at the time of the incident. He also smoked one "hit" of marijuana that night and had taken methamphetamine the Sunday before, but was not under the influence during his interaction with defendant and Andrew. At the time of the hearing, he was 57 years old; 5 feet 10 or 11 inches tall; and weighed 230 pounds. He was homeless and living in a storage shed, while also staying with other people at times.

The stab wound was to Ralph's left bicep. He subsequently underwent surgery for the stab wound and was still in a cast at the time of the hearing. He still had numbness in his thumb and only limited movement in his fingers due to nerve damage.

On cross-examination, Ralph denied pushing Andrew on the chest with both hands. He also denied telling defendant that he was going to kill him. After the stabbing, he was cut and scared and acknowledged calling out to a friend in a white car. He was hoping his friend was nearby and said to follow the car of defendant, who was leaving the scene. Neither Ralph nor his friend chased the car, but his friend did come up to Ralph as he pushed his bike along the sidewalk and took him to the hospital.

Andrew G., who had turned 18 the week before the jurisdictional hearing, testified that he and defendant are friends. On January 21, 2020, approximately 12:45 or 1:00 a.m., he was sneaking out of his house in Napa to go hang out with defendant, who was sitting in his car on the corner. As he snuck out, a man on a bike—later identified as Ralph C.—stopped him and said, " ‘What's up?’ " Andrew, who was startled, said, " ‘This is my house and I'm just leaving.’ " He then walked away. As he walked toward the passenger side door of defendant's car, he looked back and realized Ralph was about 50 feet away and following him, which concerned him. He opened the passenger side door to defendant's car, said that a man was following him, and told defendant to get out of the car. Andrew and defendant had been planning to hang out at Andrew's house, but because he had told Ralph that he lived there and did not want any trouble, he planned to walk around the block and wait for Ralph to go away, instead of going directly back to his house.

Defendant got out of the car, but was a few paces behind Andrew, who started walking away. After Andrew turned the corner, Ralph rode up to him on his bike and initially stopped three or four feet away. Ralph then got confrontational. Andrew did not recall exactly what Ralph said, but he was "definitely aggressive" and thought Andrew had stolen something. Andrew then said, "get the F out of here" and put his hands up in self-defense. Ralph dropped his bike, approached Andrew, and pushed him on the chest with both hands. Andrew did not fall down, but the push was hard enough that he stepped back three or four steps.

Andrew testified that defendant, who had been following behind Andrew, stepped up to Ralph and said, " ‘Hey, don't touch my friend.’ " Ralph, who was bigger than both Andrew and defendant³ and "was looking very threatening," turned around to face defendant, still acting aggressively. About 5 to 10 seconds later, defendant appeared to throw a punch at Ralph's left shoulder area; Andrew did not see a knife. Ralph looked down and said to defendant, " ‘Hey, did you stab me?’ " Andrew then ran down the street and hid behind a car for 5 to 10 minutes, waiting to see if Ralph would pursue him. He heard Ralph yell to his friend, " ‘Hey, go get him,’ " and saw the friend start pursuing defendant in a white SUV-type vehicle. Andrew called defendant on his cell phone, and defendant said the person in the car was still chasing him. Defendant called Andrew back a few minutes later and said he was going to come and pick Andrew up, which he did.

After Andrew got into defendant's car, defendant told him he had stabbed Ralph, the man who had been chasing Andrew, and said something like, " ‘Nobody messes with my friend.’ " Defendant showed him a large knife with a wooden handle, which had blood on it. Defendant then drove to his own house, where they talked more about the stabbing. Defendant showed him the knife again before going to clean it. Andrew's father called Andrew after noticing he was gone, and Andrew told defendant he had to go home. Defendant asked Andrew not to mention him because he did not want to be involved. While still at defendant's house, Andrew deleted the text messages on his phone between him and defendant from that night, which were about when and where to meet. He had...