Opinion ID: 821509
Heading Depth: 5
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Melissa Fader

Text: In March 1994, Melissa Fader was living in a trailer in Modesto behind her landlady Nellie Thompson. On March 21, Fader‘s friend, Michelle Joe, stopped by in a green Mustang with her new boyfriend, Johnny Long, around 10:30 or 11:00 a.m. and chatted with Fader for a while, then left. A couple of hours later, Joe drove up again in the Mustang with her daughter Crystal, but without Long. Joe told Fader she had told Long she needed to borrow the car to take Fader to the hospital. Joe and Fader then cruised around in the Mustang for an hour or two trying to ―score some dope‖ — meaning ―crank‖ or methamphetamine — but they were unsuccessful. Joe dropped Fader off at her trailer and left. According to Fader, she next saw Joe around 10:30 or 11:00 p.m. that night. Fader had been up for several days on crank and was fighting with her boyfriend, who had locked her in the trailer with a padlock. Fader told Joe she wanted to get away, and Joe invited Fader to come with her. Fader climbed out the window, taking some clothes so she could change later if necessary. Fader testified that when she got in the backseat of the Mustang, defendant was in the front passenger seat. Fader had met defendant once before. Both defendant and Joe had gloves on, but Fader had none. Joe, who was driving, told Fader they were going to rob a house where no one was home.3 The plan was to enter the house, take things, and leave. Joe drove to the house at 519 Nebraska Avenue and pulled into the driveway. Joe walked up to the house and determined an old man was sleeping inside. They then drove around trying to find a back way 3 On cross-examination, Fader contradicted herself and said Joe had told her that morning that Long‘s uncle was house sitting and would be at the Nebraska Avenue house. 9 into the house, but were unsuccessful.4 They returned to the house and parked near a brush pile. According to Fader, Joe announced a plan to wake the old man, tell him her car had broken down, and ask if she and Fader could spend the night. While Joe walked up to the house, defendant retrieved a tool from a shed behind the house and put it in the car‘s trunk. After about five minutes, Joe returned to the car and said, ― ‗let‘s go.‘ ‖ Joe instructed defendant to wait 15 minutes; she and Fader then walked to the house. Sherman let them in, and Joe pretended to use the phone while Sherman offered Fader a beer. Joe claimed to be unable to reach anyone by phone. Sherman said the women could stay the night and told them to make themselves at home. He showed them to a bedroom and left them alone. Joe then instructed Fader to go back out and talk to Sherman. Fader did so, then took a bath and made a sandwich. Eventually, she fell asleep on the small sofa, and Sherman fell asleep on the large sofa. At 3:30 a.m., Fader explained, she awoke to find defendant standing over Sherman, pointing a large gun at him and loudly demanding to know where he kept his wallet. Sherman answered the wallet was in a box in the bedroom. Defendant ordered Fader to tie up Sherman. When Fader refused, defendant pointed the gun at her and said ― ‗you‘re gonna do it.‘ ‖ Defendant handed Fader a necktie and told Sherman to put his hands behind his back. Fader tied Sherman‘s hands, loosely at first, but defendant ordered her to tie them tighter. Defendant seemed angry, whereas earlier in the evening his mood had been ―civil.‖ 4 A neighbor who lived about 300 yards south of the Nebraska Avenue house testified that late at night on March 21, 1994, a green Mustang with three people inside drove into his yard, made a U-turn, and left as dogs were barking. 10 Fader testified that she told defendant she wanted to leave, but defendant said ― ‗you ain‘t going nowhere,‘ ‖ and ordered her to grab the microwave oven and typewriter. Fader took those items to the car and returned through the sliding glass door. Sherman was lying on his stomach on the sofa with defendant standing over him. Fader found Joe in the second bedroom, going through Sherman‘s wallet. Fader said she wanted to leave, and Joe told her to go out the window, which she did. Joe handed Fader some items — including a ―radio‖ or ―stereo‖ and a large jar of pennies — through the window, and Fader took them to the car. Joe emerged from the house and put more items in the car. Together Fader and Joe then loaded a few more things that had been piled outside the window into the car. Joe then got in the driver‘s seat, and Fader got in the backseat. According to Fader, after about five minutes, the women heard a gunshot. Defendant emerged from the house carrying a shotgun, which he put in the trunk. He got in the car and said, ― ‗let‘s get out of here.‘ ‖ Joe informed him there was another gun in the house. Defendant returned to the house and retrieved a second gun, which Fader described as a ―long gun‖ that could have been a rifle. Defendant put that gun in the trunk and got back in the car. Joe then drove away. At defendant‘s suggestion, Fader testified, they drove to Prescott Estates, where defendant unsuccessfully tried to sell the stolen property. Eventually they arrived at Richie‘s apartment. Fader was not acquainted with Richie or the apartment at that time. Joe, who had urinated in her pants, took a shower and changed into some fresh clothes provided by Richie‘s girlfriend, Sisk. Fader and defendant went into the bathroom and ingested some crank. Fader then went into the bedroom and started counting pennies from the jar taken from the Nebraska Avenue house. 11 According to Fader, two men showed up at the apartment to purchase the stolen property while Fader stayed in the bedroom counting pennies. After a while, Joe entered the bedroom and said they had gotten an ―eight-ball‖ of crank for all of the items. When Fader emerged from the bedroom, the crank was being divided up. Fader received a gram or half a gram. Fader testified that she and defendant went into the bathroom and ingested more crank. Fader then returned to the bedroom and continued counting and rolling pennies. Defendant followed her into the bedroom and wanted to ―mess around.‖ Fader did not want to but complied ―under force‖ because she was afraid of defendant. Afterwards, when it was getting light outside, Joe took Fader home and instructed her not to tell anyone what had happened at the Nebraska Avenue house. Fader testified that when she arrived home, she had her share of the crank, about $4 in pennies, and a grinder. Fader tried to sell the grinder to Nellie Thompson for $5. Thompson did not want the grinder, but gave Fader $5 anyway. Fader put the grinder on Thompson‘s porch. About a week later, Fader told Thompson defendant had raped her the day she got the grinder. Fader identified People‘s exhibit No. 56 as the grinder she had obtained from the robbery and left on Thompson‘s porch.5