California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from The People v. Shayesteh, B217371, No. BA329364 (Cal. App. 2010):
Moreover, "the determination whether a defendant intended his words to be taken as a threat, and whether the words were sufficiently unequivocal, unconditional, immediate and specific [that] they conveyed to the victim an immediacy of purpose and immediate prospect of execution of the threat can be based on all the surrounding circumstances and not just on the words alone. The parties' history can also be considered as one of the relevant circumstances." (People v. Mendoza (1997) 59 Cal.App.4th 1333, 1340.)
Finally, when a defendant challenges on appeal the sufficiency of the evidence, "Our power as an appellate court begins and ends with the determination whether, on the entire record, there is substantial evidence, contradicted or uncontradicted, to support the judgment. [Citation.]" (People v. Hernandez (1990) 219 Cal.App.3d 1177, 1181-1182.)
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