People v. Espudo CA6, H042639

Defendant Anthony Espudo was arrested at a residence with visible signs of drug use, taken to jail, booked, and placed in a holding room for ~9–10 hours before a strip-search.
During a shower/strip-search, a correctional officer observed Espudo make a motion and heard something hit the shower; the officer found a plastic bindle on the shower floor containing heroin.
The officer testified the bindle smelled of vinegar and feces; Espudo said the bindle must have fallen from his pocket.
Espudo was charged with possession of controlled substances in jail (Pen. Code § 4573.6); after amendment the information charged simple possession in jail; a jury convicted him of that offense.
The trial court suspended sentence and granted probation; Espudo appealed arguing the court should have instructed the jury on (1) the transitory/ momentary-possession defense and (2) the lesser-included offense of simple possession (Health & Saf. Code § 11350).

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument (People)	Defendant's Argument (Espudo)	Held
Whether the trial court erred by refusing to give the transitory-possession instruction (CALCRIM No. 2305)	No—there was insufficient evidence to support the instruction; evidence showed extended possession and concealment	Yes—there was substantial evidence he only discovered the drugs moments before discarding them and disposed of them to abandon, not to prevent seizure	Denied; no substantial evidence supported the instruction
Whether the court should have instructed on lesser-included offense of simple possession (HS § 11350)	Not necessary because transitory-possession instruction was unsupportable	Necessary if transitory-possession was supported, because jury could find simple possession rather than possession-in-jail	Denied as contingent claim; because transitory-possession failed, lesser-included instruction not required
Whether cumulative instructional errors required reversal	No prejudice shown because challenged instructions were properly refused	Argues cumulative error requires reversal	Denied; no instructional errors found

People v. Mijares, 6 Cal.3d 415 (recognizes limited transitory-possession defense for momentary handling to dispose)
People v. Martin, 25 Cal.4th 1180 (clarifies Mijares: defense applies only to momentary/transitory possession for disposal)
People v. Burnham, 176 Cal.App.3d 1134 (instructions on defense theories must be given when supported by substantial evidence)
People v. Cluff, 87 Cal.App.4th 991 (substantial-evidence standard excludes speculation or conjecture)