No jury contact, sex defendant told

A Yuba County judge on Monday warned a Linda man who sexually abused his stepdaughter not to contact jurors who convicted him.

Judge Julia Scrogin said the order applies not only to the defendant, Lupe James Sanchez, but also to his representatives. An investigator claiming to represent Yuba County contacted three jurors, she said.

Scrogin had sealed the jurors' names until the case concludes.

"We have rules about not contacting or harassing jurors for a purpose," she said.

Sanchez, 44, is being held in the Yuba County Jail without bail. He was scheduled to be sentenced Monday, but his Sacramento attorney, Robbin Coker, again failed to appear. Scrogin and Deputy District Attorney Brad Enos said Coker's secretary contacted them at the last minute, saying Coker was receiving medical care.

"I'm really weary of these last-minute continuances," Enos told the judge.

Sanchez could receive a prison sentence as long as 16 years.

Enos said earlier that Sanchez began indecently touching the girl when she was 8 or 9 and was having sexual intercourse with her when she was 13 or 14.

Scrogin continued the case until Friday and ordered Coker to appear or show cause why she should not be cited for contempt of court. If Coker does not appear and sends a substitute attorney, Sanchez could be sentenced anyway, Scrogin said.

According to trial testimony, Sanchez has the stepdaughter's name tattooed on his leg, close to a tattoo depicting a naked woman surrounded by flames. Coker said earlier the tattoo depicts the late Anna Nicole Smith, not the stepdaughter.

Contact Appeal reporter Rob Young at 749-4710 or ryoung@appealdemocrat.com