California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from People v. Duenas, B278539 (Cal. App. 2017):
and of solid valuesuch that a reasonable trier of fact could find the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. [Citation.] In applying this test, we review the evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution and presume in support of the judgment the existence of every fact the jury could reasonably have deduced from the evidence. [Citation.] 'Conflicts and even testimony [that] is subject to justifiable suspicion do not justify the reversal of a judgment, for it is the exclusive province of the trial judge or jury to determine the credibility of a witness and the truth or falsity of the facts upon which a determination depends. [Citation.] We resolve neither credibility issues nor evidentiary conflicts; we look for substantial evidence. [Citation.]' [Citation.] A reversal for insufficient evidence 'is unwarranted unless it appears "that upon no hypothesis whatever is there sufficient substantial evidence to support"' the jury's verdict. [Citation.]" (People v. Zamudio (2008) 43 Cal.4th 327, 357.)
In count 7, defendant was convicted of violating section 288.7, subdivision (a), which states, "Any person 18 years of age or older who engages in sexual intercourse or sodomy with a child who is 10 years of age or younger is guilty of a felony and shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for a term of 25 years to life." "Sexual intercourse means any penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or genitalia by the penis." (People v. Mendoza (2015) 240 Cal.App.4th 72, 79.) "Any sexual penetration, however slight, is sufficient to complete the crime of sodomy." ( 286, subd. (a).) Defendant asserts that the testimony at trial did not establish beyond a reasonable doubt that penetration occurred.
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