People v. Bringas CA4/1

── People v. Bringas CA4/1 ── Court: California Court of Appeal Date: April 23, 2026 Category: General Filed 4/23/26 P. v. Bringas CA4/1 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 8.1115(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115. COURT OF APPEAL, FOURTH APPELLATE DISTRICT DIVISION ONE STATE OF CALIFORNIA THE PEOPLE, D086917 Plaintiff and Respondent, v. (Super. Ct. No. FVI23003204) DAVID JOHNATHON BRINGAS, Defendant and Appellant. APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of San Bernardino County, John Peter Vander Feer, Judge. Affirmed. Jason Szydlik, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant. Rob Bonta, Attorney General, Lance E. Winters, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Charles C. Ragland, Assistant Attorney General, Steve Oetting and Heather B. Arambarri, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent.  A jury convicted David Johnathon Bringas of forcible rape (Pen. Code,1 § 261, subd. (a)(2)); forcible oral copulation (§ 287, subd. (c)(2)(A)); and false imprisonment (§ 236). The jury also found true two aggravating factors (§ 1170, subd. (b)(2)). The trial court sentenced Bringas to an aggregate prison term of 16 years. Bringas timely appealed. Bringas asserts the trial court prejudicially erred by failing to advise the jury that the victim’s capacity to consent was not relevant to the charged offenses of forcible rape and forcible oral copulation. Alternatively, Bringas contends the trial court erred by not providing an instruction on legal consent in response to a jury question. Finding no error, we affirm the judgment. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND A. The Prosecution On August 7, 2022, Z.C. consumed two to four alcoholic drinks at home before going to a bar with her boyfriend, J.B. At the bar, Z.C. consumed one or two more drinks and possibly two shots. At closing time, Z.C. and her boyfriend attempted to call an Uber, but experienced difficulty with the Uber app. As the couple stood outside the bar, Bringas stopped his car in front of the bar. J.B. offered Bringas $30 and gas for a ride home. Bringas agreed and the couple got into the backseat of Bringas’s car. During the drive, J.B. asked Bringas to pull over because Z.C. was not feeling well and needed to vomit. Once they were back on the road, Bringas stopped at a gas station so J.B. could buy him gas. Bringas became upset when J.B. only put two dollars’ worth of gas in the car and he yelled at J.B. to get out of the car. Once J.B. was out of the car, Bringas drove away with Z.C. still in the backseat. 1 Undesignated statutory references are to the Penal Code. 2  Z.C. repeatedly asked Bringas to stop and go back, but Bringas told her to “shut the fuck up.” Bringas then slowed down and Z.C. jumped out of the car. Bringas exited the car, grabbed Z.C., and threw her back into the car. The next thing Z.C. remembered was “ending up in a room” and “being on the bed.” Her dress was pulled up and Bringas was on top of her, having sexual intercourse with her. Z.C. told Bringas to stop multiple times, but Bringas held her arms above her head and continued. Bringas also put his hand on Z.C.’s neck and applied pressure. Bringas then turned Z.C. over onto her stomach and continued raping her. Bringas then grabbed Z.C. by her hair, threw her onto the ground and inserted his penis into her mouth. When Z.C. was back on the bed on her back, Bringas inserted his fingers into her vagina. Some time