• Neither
Florence nor Rebekah ever took the witness stand. Their attorney did not present their case. Instead, the trial judge granted their “motion for judgment” and the trial
concluded. The judge ruled that Rose had not sustained her burden
of proof, meaning that even
if Florence and Rebekah put on their case, Rose could not win at trial, so there was no reason for the trial to continue.
•
• Rose
Wendland and Robert’s court-appointed public defender immediately appealed the
decision to the Third
District Court of Appeal, located in Sacramento, California. That court issued its ruling in February 2000, from which Florence and Rebekah
appealed to the
California Supreme Court.
•