People v. Lopez

79 P.3d 548 (2003)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

Yang was seated inside his van in a parking lot. D approached him and offered to sell him a watch. Yang replied that he had a watch. D pulled out a gun and shot at the ground. At gunpoint, Yang and ordered him out of his van. Yang left his keys in the ignition. D sat in the van and threw his backpack onto the passenger seat. Yang remembered that he had left some checks inside the van. Realizing that D's weapon was an air gun, Yang returned to retrieve his checks. D pointed his gun at Yang and pulled the trigger twice, but the gun did not fire. D fled leaving his backpack, containing identification, in the van. The trial court found D guilty of multiple felony offenses, including carjacking. Under the three-strikes law, the court imposed a lengthy term of imprisonment. The court of appeals affirmed. D claimed that because the vehicle had not been moved or the engine started, there was no carjacking and that he was guilty of attempted carjacking. The court held that the actual movement of a motor vehicle is not required.