California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from People v. Superior Court of Riverside Cnty., E062380 (Cal. App. 2017):
when there is a total absence of evidence to support a necessary element of the offense charged. [Citations.] [] "[A]lthough there must be some showing as to the existence of each element of the charged crime [citation] such a showing may be made by means of circumstantial evidence supportive of reasonable inferences on the part of the magistrate." [Citation.] "Every legitimate inference that may be drawn from the evidence must be drawn in favor of the information." [Citations.] Thus, the ultimate test is that " ' "an information will not be set aside or prosecution thereon prohibited if there is some rational ground for assuming the possibility that an offense has been committed and the accused is guilty of it." ' " [Citation.] [] We review the evidence in support of the information to determine whether as a matter of law it is sufficient, not whether the trial court's ruling was reasonable. [Citations.]' [Citation.]" (Salazar v. Superior Court (2000) 83 Cal.App.4th 840, 842.)
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