Can a defendant who makes a threat to set fire to a building where the victim works after making the threat?

For instance, in People v. Martinez, supra, 53 Cal.App.4th 1212, the defendant claimed the language of his threat was vague and did not specifically convey a threat of great bodily injury or death. The appellate court conceded his threat may not have, by itself, conveyed a threat to commit great bodily injury or death but held that the trier of fact could consider all of the surrounding circumstances in deciding whether a terrorist threat had been made. In that case, the defendant set fire to a building where the victim worked a day after the defendant had made the threat. The court held the jury could properly consider that fact. It reasoned: "Defendant's activities after the threat give meaning to the words and imply that he meant serious business when he made the threat." (Id. at p. 1221; fn. omitted.)

In People v. Mendoza (1997) 59 Cal.App.4th 1333, a similar result was reached. The appellate court agreed that while the words themselves did not constitute a terrorist threat, the jury could consider all of the surrounding circumstances, including the parties' history and subsequent actions taken by the defendant. In that case, less than 30 minutes after the threat was made, members of the defendant's gang parked their car in front of the victim's home and honked the horn to gain her attention. (Id. at pp. 1341-1343.)