Client Breaks 3 Ribs of Girlfriend, Probation, Torrance

Our client, age 25, had a girlfriend who was forty-seven.  She was a heavy alcohol drinker and also smoked marijuana continuously, used methamphetamine and ecstasy on a regular basis.  She did not have a job.  Our client lived at his parents’ home in Torrance and had a part-time job as an Uber driver.

Our client had a lengthy criminal history for someone only 25 years old.  He had a juvenile adjudication for arson, a conviction for first-degree residential burglary (a “Strike” under California’s Three Strikes Law), multiple public intoxication convictions and two prior cases for possession of a controlled substance, both of which were resolved with judicial diversion.  

In December 2023, as our client was house-sitting for his parents, who were away in Korea for several months, his girlfriend accused him of cheating on her.  Our client denied this and in response, his girlfriend grabbed his cell phone and tossed it into the backyard pool.  Our client was eating spaghetti at the time and the girlfriend also took the plate of food away, only to toss it at him, messing up his clothes.

In response, our client pushed her away forcefully, knocking her to the ground.  Our client stood approximately six feet tall  and weighed well over two hundred pounds, while his girlfriend stood five foot seven inches tall and weighed 130 pounds.  

Later in the day, he took his girlfriend to the Little Company of Mary Emergency Room because she complained of pain to her ribs where he had pushed her.

While at the emergency room, she explained her injuries as being caused by falling down the stairs.  Her body was x-rayed, revealing three fractured ribs (not broken).  She also had a 

Hospital staff, however, suspected such injuries were caused by something else and pressured her to describe more about the fall.  

Finally, after many questions, she told the hospital staff that our client had punched her and “then stomped on my head and body for fifteen minutes straight and kicked me in the back.  He then picked me up and body-slammed me three time on cement and carried me back in the house when I tried to escape.”  The victim, however, had no head injuries after her head was allegedly being stomped on by our large client for fifteen minutes, which otherwise probably would have killed her. 

Our client, meanwhile, was sitting in the hospital lobby, and the client’s girlfriend told hospital staff this.  Hospital staff then called the Torrance Police, but our client left before they could arrive.

Our client was arrested a few days later and candidly explained to the police that he had pushed his girlfriend when she threw his cellphone in the pool and threw his plate of spaghetti on him.  

Our client was charged with felony domestic violence (Penal Code § 273.5(a)), as well as kidnapping (Penal Code § 207(a)).  The complaint further alleged a great bodily injury enhancement (Penal Code § 12022.7(e)), which is punishable by an additional 3, 4 or 5 years in state prison.  Our client’s prior strike was also alleged as a sentencing enhancement to double the sentence, if our client were convicted.

The father of our client called Greg Hill & Associates once he returned to the United States.  He explained that he really did not know what went on between his son and his girlfriend, but that his son needed a good attorney because he faced over ten years in state prison, to be served at 85% if convicted.  At the time, the client was in custody because bail was over $100,000.

The father then retained Greg Hill & Associates and Greg substituted in on the case at the Torrance Superior Court.

Over the next eight months, Greg attempted to plea bargain the case to a non-custody resolution because the victim clearly had exaggerated what took place and her rib fractures actually may have been attributable to other falls she experienced, which were frequent, when extremely drunk.  Moreover, the victim had left California, and was living in Arizona or Florida.

When it became clear that the victim may not appear for trial, the prosecution ordered and then provided Greg 97 jailhouse phone call recordings that our client had made, many of which were to the victim.  Greg had to review all the calls and did so.  However, not one of the calls included an admission, apology or confession by our client to even kicking the victim, let alone stomping on her head or body-slamming her as she alleged.

The case eventually resolved, after the jailhouse calls were reviewed, for four years of formal probation, seven years of state prison suspended (three years (mid-term) for the domestic violence charge and four years (mid-term) for the great bodily injury enhancement), as well as an obligation to attend fifty-two batterer’s program classes.  Our client’s probation on the first-degree residential burglary was also extended two years after he admitted a violation due to the domestic violence case.  Our client further had to waive all credits accumulated while he was in custody, which was 203 days of actual custody, plus 203 good-time credits, which otherwise would have been credited toward the seven years if there is a probation violation.

The client and his father were very happy with the client ultimately getting probation and being released.