California Court of Appeal, 1st District — appointed by Edmund Gerald Brown
People v. Fortanel
California Court of Appeal · 1990-08-23 · cited 1×
The case involved the conviction of defendant Librado Cabrera Fortanel for one count of lewd and lascivious conduct with a child by force under Penal Code section 288(b), based on an incident with an eight-year-old neighbor in the summer of 1986. On appeal, Fortanel contended that the information's allegation of the offense occurring "on or about June 1, 1986 through July 31, 1986," without a more precise date, denied him due process by impairing his ability to present an alibi defense. The Court of Appeal affirmed the judgment, reasoning that Penal Code section 955 permits the time of the offense to be alleged generally unless it is a material ingredient, that the two-month period provided adequate notice, and that the jury was properly instructed to agree on a specific act within that period, consistent with Supreme Court precedent in People v. Wrigley.
criminal lawprocedure
Borel v. County of Contra Costa
California Court of Appeal · 1990-05-17 · cited 4×
This case concerns a property owner's challenge to the County of Contra Costa's tax assessment of a 17-acre parcel zoned for agricultural use but designated in the local general plan for future administrative offices. After the owner's father died in 1983, triggering reassessment, the assessor valued the land at over $5 million based on its potential commercial use, disregarding the owner's pending application for agricultural preserve status under the Williamson Act to restrict it to farming. The Assessment Appeals Board upheld a high valuation, the trial court affirmed, and the owner appealed. The Court of Appeal reversed the judgment, holding that Revenue and Taxation Code sections 402.1 and 402.5 require the assessor to consider enforceable restrictions such as zoning and agricultural preserves, with a rebuttable presumption that such restrictions are permanent and limit value to the restricted use; the matter was remanded to the AAB for proceedings applying the correct valuation method.
propertytaxes
Aronow v. LaCroix
California Court of Appeal · 1990-04-24 · cited 19×
This case concerns a malicious prosecution action filed by attorney Betty Aronow against attorneys LaCroix and Schumb, stemming from a long chain of related lawsuits that originated with a 1967 medical malpractice suit by Roscoe Bailey. The trial court entered judgment for Aronow after finding the required elements of favorable termination and lack of probable cause. The Court of Appeal reversed the judgment and ordered entry of judgment for the defendants, holding that the underlying action (Bailey II) did not satisfy the favorable-termination requirement for malicious prosecution because it involved multiple theories of recovery and was resolved by dismissal after demurrer without a determination on the merits.
proceduretorts & liability
Continental Casualty Co. v. Royal Insurance of America
California Court of Appeal · 1990-02-26 · cited 23×
This case involved an excess insurance carrier, Continental Casualty Company, suing a primary insurance carrier, Royal Insurance of America, for breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing and unfair claims practices under the Insurance Code. The dispute arose after a gas explosion led to a liability lawsuit against their shared insured, where Royal allegedly rejected reasonable settlement demands within its $500,000 policy limits, forcing Continental to contribute an additional $900,000 to settle the claims and assume the defense. The jury returned a verdict for Continental on multiple grounds, including failure to attempt good-faith settlement when liability was clear and breach of the duty to defend, and the trial court added damages for fees and interest. The appellate court affirmed the judgment, reasoning that the primary carrier's obligations run to the excess carrier through equitable subrogation and that the record supported the jury's findings on breach and causation.
business & regulatorytorts & liability
Frazier v. County of Sonoma
California Court of Appeal · 1990-02-23 · cited 2×
In Frazier v. County of Sonoma, a motorcyclist sued Sonoma County for injuries from a head-on collision, alleging that the roads near the Bohemian Highway and River Boulevard intersection were in a dangerous condition due to inadequate traffic markings and other features, in violation of the California Tort Claims Act. The trial court granted the county's motion for nonsuit after the plaintiff's case, and the appellate court affirmed the judgment. The court reasoned that under Government Code section 830.4, the absence of regulatory traffic control markings does not constitute a dangerous condition that can support public entity liability, and the plaintiff failed to establish the required elements of a dangerous condition claim. The decision focused on statutory definitions and the plaintiff's burden of proof without addressing other elements like notice or causation once the dangerous condition threshold was not met.
torts & liabilityprocedure
People v. Remington
California Court of Appeal · 1990-01-24 · cited 14×
The case involved defendant Remington, who at age 17 stole multiple firearms and other weapons in Solano County, used a shotgun to carjack a van in Contra Costa County, murdered a Solano County deputy sheriff during a traffic stop, and fired at pursuing officers while fleeing into Yolo County. On appeal, Remington challenged his murder conviction due to alleged errors in jury instructions and sought reversal of four aggravated assault convictions plus a firearms theft conviction on grounds that those offenses occurred outside the trial county of Solano. The Court of Appeal affirmed the judgment in full. It found no instructional error on the murder count and held that Remington had waived any venue or vicinage objection to the other convictions by failing to raise the issue in superior court, applying the implied-waiver rule from People v. Lilienthal even where a federal constitutional dimension was asserted.
criminal lawprocedure