Court Opinion

ID: 9895403
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-11-07 00:06:03.20971+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:12:29.887325
License: Public Domain

Filed 11/6/23 Saheli v. Zabeti CA4/3

                  NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS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 This opinion has not been certified for publication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.

                IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

                                     FOURTH APPELLATE DISTRICT

                                                 DIVISION THREE

 PARICHEHR SAHELI,

      Plaintiff and Respondent,                                          G061475

           v.                                                            (Super. Ct. No. 30-2021-01213565)

 RAMIN ZABETI,                                                           OPINION

      Defendant and Appellant.

                   Appeal from an order of the Superior Court of Orange County, Aaron W.
Heisler, Commissioner. Affirmed. Respondent’s request for judicial notice is denied.
                   Ramin Zabeti, in pro. per., for Defendant and Appellant.
                   Borchard & Callahan, Thomas J. Borchard, and Denise Ho for Plaintiff and
Respondent.
                                             *               *               *
              Defendant and Appellant Ramin Zabeti challenges the trial court’s entry of
an elder abuse restraining order, against him, protecting plaintiff and respondent
Parichehr Saheli. Zabeti argues (1) Saheli failed to show a “past act of abuse” other than
a single July 25, 2021 incident; (2) the trial court incorrectly found a violation of a
temporary restraining order; and (3) the trial court incorrectly considered Zabeti’s
criminal history in Nevada, even though a Nevada court had ordered that criminal history
sealed. We affirm the order.

                         FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY
              Zabeti is Saheli’s stepson. On July 25, 2021, Zabeti came to Saheli’s
home, where Zabeti’s father lived with Saheli. Saheli’s niece was also visiting at the
time.

Saheli’s Version of Events
              According to Saheli, when she opened the door Zabeti pushed the door into
Saheli, forcing her to the wall. Saheli asked Zabeti to leave, but he refused. Zabeti took
his father to Zabeti’s car, that was parked at the curb, put him inside the car, and locked
the car. Zabeti pushed Saheli into the street, away from the car, where she fell down and
hit her head. Zabeti then drove away with his father. Saheli’s knee and head were
injured.

Zabeti’s Version of Events
              Zabeti testified he usually was able to go inside the house when he picked
up his father. When Saheli opened the door, he began walking inside and she hit him
with the door. Saheli told Zabeti he was not welcome, but Zabeti had his father’s
permission to enter the house. Zabeti did not push the door, but rather “squeezed” into
the house. Zabeti visited his father approximately four times per year. Zabeti

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approached the home with his camera running, which he had not done on previous visits.
He did so because Saheli was refusing to allow him to visit his father, even though he and
his father had previously scheduled a visit. He did not ask Saheli for permission to
videotape her or advise her that she was being videotaped.
              Zabeti had scheduled a visit with his father for the previous day, July 24,
but he and his siblings could not reach his father by phone that day to confirm. Zabeti
spoke to his father on the morning of July 25, and his father advised Zabeti to come and
pick him up. Zabeti did not leave when Saheli told him he was not welcome because if
he had left, he would have had to drive back to his home in Las Vegas without seeing his
father. Zabeti was concerned because of the history of conflict with Saheli, including
physical abuse of Zabeti by Saheli when Zabeti was a child.
              Zabeti testified Saheli attacked him outside, ramming into him, such that
she bounced off and fell down. Zabeti denied being convicted of a felony, or of
possession of a controlled substance.
              Zabeti testified he lived with Saheli from 1984 through 1987, and that
Saheli repeatedly struck Zabeti during that period. Saheli locked Zabeti in a closet and
would not let him out until he called her “mommy.” Zabeti saw Saheli slam the front
door of their home on his father’s hand, causing serious injuries. In October of 1987,
Saheli slapped Zabeti in the face several times, leaving bruises around his eyes, welts on
his face, and a bruise on his arm. When Zabeti went to school, the school contacted
social services and Zabeti was taken into protective custody. Saheli admitted to the
Anaheim Police Department that she had slapped Zabeti after Zabeti called her a bad
word.
              In 2020, Zabeti’s father created a will and a trust. After the creation of
these documents, Zabeti found it much more difficult to visit his father and believed
Saheli was obstructing this visitation. Later in 2020, Zabeti’s father sustained significant
injuries arising from a fall, including broken ribs and a fracture of the lower back. When

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Zabeti visited his father after these injuries, Zabeti also noticed bruising under one of his
father’s eyes.
                 Zabeti’s father called Zabeti on July 23, 2021, to discuss a visit. Zabeti’s
father agreed to keep his cell phone powered on and properly charged, and asked Zabeti
to call when he arrived in Southern California the next day, July 24, 2021. Zabeti called
on July 24 and Zabeti’s father’s cell phone did not ring, but instead went straight to
voicemail. Zabeti left a voicemail but did not receive a return call that day. The next
day, July 25, Zabeti again called his father’s cell phone, which again did not ring and
went straight to voicemail. Zabeti next called his father’s home phone, which Saheli
answered. Zabeti spoke to his father, who invited Zabeti to come pick him up for a visit.
                 Ten minutes later, while en route to the house, Zabeti received another
phone call from the home phone. This time, Saheli told Zabeti that his father had a
physical therapy appointment that day, and that it was not a good day to visit. Zabeti’s
father also indicated he could not go with Zabeti. Zabeti replied that physical therapy
appointments do not occur on Sundays, his father had requested to be picked up, and
Zabeti was on his way.
                 Zabeti had experienced Saheli lying previously and believed Saheli might
lie about the incident to come. Therefore, Saheli activated the video recording feature on
his cell phone as he approached the house. Zabeti did not recall Saheli’s back hitting the
wall when he entered the house. Zabeti did not hear Saheli say “ow,” or make any other
vocalization consistent with pain. Zabeti did not perceive Saheli to be injured. Zabeti
did not use his hands to open the door, but rather pushed his body between the double
doors of the home.
                 Zabeti then saw his father, who greeted Zabeti and appeared happy to see
him. Zabeti’s father did not ask Zabeti to leave or express that Zabeti was not welcome.
Saheli walked past and threatened to call the police. Zabeti told Saheli he was only there
to pick up his father. Saheli grabbed Zabeti’s father, who was wearing socks, by the hand

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and began pulling him across the marble floor. Zabeti’s father resisted by leaning back
and told Saheli in Farsi to calm down. Zabeti felt Saheli’s behavior created an imminent
threat of injury to his father. Zabeti placed his body between Saheli and his father.
Saheli then called Zabeti a “scoundrel” in Farsi.
              Saheli left to the kitchen, while Zabeti’s father entered his room to change
clothes. Shortly thereafter, Zabeti and his father began moving toward the garage to
leave the house. Saheli hurried in front of Zabeti and locked the door. Zabeti believed
Saheli was behaving irrationally. Zabeti backed up and Saheli moved toward the front
door. Zabeti and his father then unlocked the garage door and entered the garage.
Zabeti’s father put his shoes on, and Zabeti opened the garage door. Saheli told Zabeti’s
father in Farsi that if he left with Zabeti, Saheli would not let him back in the house.
Zabeti’s father replied, “Don’t let me . . . back in there.”
              Zabeti believed at this point that his father needed, and was asking for,
Zabeti’s help to escape Saheli’s control. Zabeti and Zabeti’s father walked down the
driveway toward the street. Saheli followed and tried to physically stop Zabeti’s father
from leaving. Saheli struck Zabeti, who pushed Saheli back with an open hand. Saheli
reached for a mop and Zabeti felt threatened.
              Saheli continued to strike and scratch Zabeti as he escorted his father down
the driveway. Zabeti repeatedly told Saheli to stop and attempted to use the minimum
force necessary to stop her. Zabeti felt he was “the only line of defense” for his father.
              When Zabeti and his father reached the car, Saheli returned to the garage.
Zabeti’s car keys and cell phone were in his left hand, and he used his right hand to close
the car door behind his father. Saheli ran down the driveway toward Zabeti and rammed
her shoulders into Zabeti several times. Zabeti told Saheli to stop. On the final shoulder
ramming attempt, Saheli bounced off Zabeti, whose back was against his car, and fell
down. Zabeti did not use his hands to push Saheli to the ground. Saheli got up from the

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ground and went up the driveway, then returned to the car and attempted to open the
passenger side door, but it was locked. Saheli then returned to the house.
              Zabeti unlocked the car door and entered the car to check on his father, who
was upset. Zabeti asked if his father still wanted to leave and have lunch with Zabeti and
Zabeti’s brother. Zabeti’s father indicated he did. Zabeti’s brother returned their father
to the home at around 9:00 p.m.

Other Evidence
              Three noncontinuous videos of the event, which were taken by Zabeti on
his cell phone, were introduced into evidence. A video depicting Zabeti’s father at lunch
later that day was also admitted. Police reports detailing Saheli’s physical abuse of
Zabeti in 1987 were also admitted into evidence. An Orange County Sheriff’s Deputy
report detailing the July 25 incident, including several photos of Zabeti’s injuries, was
admitted as well. Zabeti also introduced into evidence a picture of injuries to his hand.
Zabeti’s brother and the sheriff’s deputy who investigated the incident both testified.
              The trial court also took judicial notice of a judicial opinion in the State of
Nevada affirming a conviction of Zabeti for possession of a controlled substance. Zabeti
requested the trial court take judicial notice of a Nevada State court order to seal the
record of his conviction, which permitted Zabeti to respond to “any inquiry” that the
conviction did not occur.

The Videos
              The videos of the event, which the trial court reviewed and which this court
has also independently reviewed, show the following events. In the first video, a man,
apparently Zabeti, approaches a house with double doors and rings the doorbell. A
woman, apparently Saheli, opens the door, looks outside, then says, “You’re not welcome
in here,” and attempts to close the door, which Zabeti appears to hold open (though the

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video does not depict whether he is using his hands or some other part of his body to do
so). Saheli says, “I’m going to call the police.” Zabeti says, “Watch out,” and forces his
way through the gap between the double doors. Zabeti walks into the house and the
camera shows another man, apparently Zabeti’s father. Saheli repeats that she intends to
call the police, and Zabeti replies that he is just there to see his father. Saheli grasps
Zabeti’s father’s hand and pulls him away from Zabeti, who places his body between
Saheli and his father. Saheli backs away.
              In the second video, Zabeti and Saheli exchange words and Zabeti has a
brief, relatively cordial conversation with a younger woman, apparently Saheli’s niece.
In this conversation, Zabeti describes Saheli as a “predator,” and a “vulture.” Zabeti then
enters his father’s room to help him dress and places the phone down on the bed. Zabeti
and his father leave the room. A woman’s voice, apparently Saheli’s, can be heard
speaking Farsi. Zabeti and his father walk toward a door that evidently leads into the
garage. Saheli runs in front of Zabeti, saying, “Stay away from here,” and locks the door,
then walks back toward the front door. The sound of a door unlocking can be heard, and
Zabeti and his father enter the garage. The camera begins shaking and a woman’s voice,
evidently Saheli’s, can be heard speaking Farsi. Zabeti’s arm can be seen blocking Saheli
from entering the garage through the door. Saheli strikes Zabeti, who says, “Ow,” and
“Get off of me.” Zabeti places his open hand on Saheli’s upper chest to hold her back,
and Saheli continues to strike Zabeti, who says, “Relax.” Saheli reaches for a mop
handle. Zabeti and his father proceed down the driveway. Saheli follows Zabeti and
strikes him again, jostling the cell phone from his hand. Zabeti says, “What are you
doing?” and “Get off of me,” as Saheli grasps Zabeti’s fingers. Zabeti says, “Stop,”
several times. Saheli says something apparently directed to Zabeti’s father, and then
says, apparently to Zabeti, “I don’t trust you,” as she returns into the garage.

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              In the third video, Zabeti is standing on the sidewalk facing the house.
Zabeti’s car keys can be seen in the bottom of the frame, as if held by the same hand
holding the cell phone. Saheli walks down the driveway, onto the sidewalk, and
approaches Zabeti. Saheli then lowers her shoulder and appears to attempt to push Zabeti
away from the passenger side door of the car. Zabeti repeatedly says, “Stop,” then says,
“Leave him alone.” Saheli initially stops, then attempts to walk around Zabeti, evidently
to reach the passenger side door of the car. The camera is jostled and neither Zabeti nor
Saheli are visible. A sound similar to shoes sliding on concrete can be heard, followed by
a muted thumping sound, and the camera turns to show Saheli lying on the sidewalk, then
standing up and walking away. Zabeti walks around the rear of the car, and a chirping
sound can be heard from the car. Saheli returns toward the car and appears to attempt to
open the passenger side door. Saheli calls back to the front door of the house, where
someone, apparently Saheli’s niece, calls back to her. Saheli walks briefly up the
driveway, then turns back toward the car. Zabeti twice says, “Go inside.” Saheli returns
into the garage.

The Trial Court’s Decision
              After the parties submitted written closing briefs, the trial court held a
hearing. The trial court denied Zabeti’s request for judicial notice, and noted that even
had it granted the request, it would not have reached any different conclusion. The trial
court found by a preponderance of the evidence that Zabeti committed an act of elder
abuse against Saheli. The trial court indicated it found neither Zabeti’s nor Saheli’s
account of events entirely credible. Instead, the trial court indicated it found most
credible the three videos, which the trial court found contradicted important parts of both
Zabeti’s and Saheli’s testimony.

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               The trial court concluded, based on the videos and the testimony, that
Zabeti used force to enter Saheli’s home, by pushing the front door open while Saheli
denied Zabeti entry. The trial court found Saheli was temporarily pinned between the
front door and the adjacent interior door. The trial court noted that it made no difference
whether Zabeti’s father had given Zabeti permission to come to the home because
Zabeti’s father did not have the power to give Zabeti permission to force his way into the
home over Saheli’s objection. The trial court also found Zabeti remained in the home
despite Saheli’s demands that he leave, made various accusations against Saheli, and
removed Zabeti’s father from the home over Saheli’s objections. The trial court
specifically noted it did not rely on any of the physical interactions after entry to find
elder abuse.
               The trial court also rejected Zabeti’s theory of defense of another. The trial
court found no credible evidence that Zabeti believed he himself would be harmed absent
his conduct. The court found Zabeti subjectively feared that Saheli was abusing his
father but found that Zabeti’s conduct based on that belief was unreasonable, because
Zabeti had various other options to protect his father aside from forcing his way into the
home.
               The trial court imposed a five-year temporary restraining order and
awarded attorney fees, to be determined by a subsequent noticed motion. The trial
court’s ruling was recorded in a minute order, in which the trial court wrote its decision
was based on “the testimony regarding the violation of temporary restraining order, and
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review of respondent’s criminal record.” Zabeti timely appealed.

               1
                This minute order, from which Zabeti’s appeal was taken, was not
included in the record, but was attached to the civil case information sheet submitted by
Zabeti. The minute order was requested in Zabeti’s notice designating the record on
appeal and was evidently omitted from the clerk’s transcript erroneously. On the court’s
own motion, the record is augmented to include the minute order.

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                                        DISCUSSION
                   On appeal, Zabeti raises three arguments. First, Zabeti contends Saheli
failed to show a “past act” of abuse aside from the July 25, 2021 incident. Zabeti
misreads the applicable statute, Welfare and Institutions Code section 15657.03. Under
subdivision (c) of that section, a protective order may be issued if a showing is made of
“a past act or acts of abuse of the petitioning elder or dependent adult.” The use of the
word “past” in subdivision (c) of section 15657.03 refers to the act as being in the past at
the time of the hearing, not that the act predates another act of abuse. A single act of
abuse will suffice, and the trial court found that Zabeti’s forced entry into the home on
July 25 qualified as abuse.
                   Zabeti’s other two contentions are best addressed together. Zabeti
contends substantial evidence does not support the trial court’s finding of a violation of
the temporary restraining order in effect prior to the trial in this matter, and that the trial
court erred in considering Zabeti’s Nevada criminal history in light of the Nevada State
court order sealing that history. In making these arguments, Zabeti attacks the grounds
for the trial court’s ruling that were recorded in the minute order.
                   However, neither of these grounds were the basis that the trial court
gave in announcing its order from the bench. Instead, the trial court indicated that it
found an act of abuse by relying principally on the three videos admitted into evidence.
The trial court made no mention of a violation of any temporary restraining order and did
not express any reliance on Zabeti’s criminal history in making its credibility
determinations. Moreover, in denying Zabeti’s request for judicial notice of the Nevada
State court order sealing his conviction, the trial court indicated that, even if it had taken
judicial notice of the order, it would have made no difference in the outcome.
                   Where the trial court’s oral pronouncement conflicts with a subsequent
minute order, the oral pronouncement controls. (People v. Zackery (2007) 147
Cal.App.4th 380, 385; In re Karla C. (2010) 186 Cal.App.4th 1236, 1260, fn. 9.) The

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trial court’s oral explanation of its reasons from the bench was clear and detailed, citing
specific events, evidence, statutory and case authority, and spanning more than five
uninterrupted pages of the reporter’s transcript, while the minute order condenses the
ruling into a single sentence containing several obvious errors. We decline to consider
the minute order an accurate statement of the trial court’s reasoning. Therefore, neither
of Zabeti’s latter two contentions support reversal of the trial court’s order.
              For the same reasons, Saheli’s request that we take judicial notice of the
docket of Zabeti’s criminal proceedings in Nevada is denied. Those proceedings were
irrelevant to the trial court’s decision, and they are equally irrelevant to this appeal.

                                       DISPOSITION
              The order is affirmed. Saheli shall recover costs on appeal.

                                                   SANCHEZ, ACTING P. J.

WE CONCUR:

MOTOIKE, J.

DELANEY, J.

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