Opinion ID: 2630185
Heading Depth: 5
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Visit to the Triplett family trailer compound

Text: After leaving Keathley's house, defendant and Gitmed drove in Gitmed's car to the Triplett family trailer compound. The compound was located on Santa Rosa Mine Road in a rural area outside the town of Perris and consisted of mobilehomes, campers, and storage sheds spread over five acres. There was a chop shop on the property, where stolen vehicles were stripped, repainted, or otherwise altered for sale. Barbara Triplett lived there with her daughter Charlene and her brother Danny Dalton, who ran the chop shop. Also living on the property was Charlene's boyfriend, Anthony Thomas Mercurio, a parolee who had recently been released from prison. Defendant first met Mercurio in July 1991, when both of them were incarcerated in state prison, and he had visited Mercurio at the Triplett compound once before. Mercurio had not been expecting defendant to come that night, and he did not know Gitmed, whom defendant introduced as his friend Ron. After a dinner of hamburgers and french fries, defendant, Gitmed, and Mercurio used some methamphetamine that Gitmed brought. While the three of them were walking around the property, Gitmed noticed a red four-wheel-drive pickup truck, and they decided to go four-bying in the countryside. The truck, which had been on the property for at least a couple of weeks, was stolen and had to be started with a screwdriver.