People v. Lopez

Defendant, having been convicted of assault with a deadly weapon, claims on this appeal that the verdict is not supported by the evidence, that the court did not correctly instruct on the law of self-defense, and that certain members of the jury were instructed in his absence.

On the evening in question defendant was drinking in a cafe in Los Angeles with Robert Fernandez, an unidentified man and two women. The entire party left the cafe, took a short ride in a taxicab, and then stopped near the place where they lived. Defendant, who was intoxicated, engaged in a fight with the unidentified…