Torture

The crime of torture is defined as follows: “Every person who, with the intent to cause cruel or extreme pain and suffering for the purpose of revenge, extortion, persuasion, or for any sadistic purpose, inflicts great bodily injury as defined in Section 12022.7 upon the person of another, is guilty of torture. [¶] The crime of torture does not require any proof that the victim suffered pain.” (§ 206.) “Torture has two elements: (1) the infliction of great bodily injury; and (2) the specific intent to cause cruel or extreme pain and suffering for the purpose of revenge, extortion, persuasion, or for any sadistic purpose.” (People v. Massie (2006) 142 Cal.App.4th 365, 370-371 (Massie ).) “[R]evenge, extortion, and persuasion are self-explanatory. Sadistic purpose encompasses the common meaning, ‘ “the infliction of pain on another person for the purpose of experiencing pleasure.” ’ ” (Id. at p. 371.) The length of time over which the offense occurred and the severity of any wounds are relevant, but not necessarily determinative. (Ibid.) Great bodily injury does not require permanent, disabling, or disfiguring injuries; abrasions, lacerations, and bruising may suffice. (People v. Odom (2016) 244 Cal.App.4th 237, 247 (Odom ).) “ ‘[C]ruel pain’ is the equivalent to ‘extreme’ or ‘severe’ pain.” (People v. Aguilar (1997) 58 Cal.App.4th 1196, 1202.) “The intent with which a person acts is rarely susceptible of direct proof and usually must be inferred from facts and circumstances surrounding the offense. [Citations.] In reviewing a jury's determination, we view the whole record in a light most favorable to the verdict, drawing all reasonable inferences and resolving all conflicts in support of the jury's verdict. [Citation.] We must uphold the verdict unless it clearly appears that upon no hypothesis whatever is there sufficient evidence to support it.” (Massie, supra, 142 Cal.App.4th at p. 371.) In reviewing a claim of insufficiency of the evidence, comparison with other cases is of limited utility, since each case necessarily depends on its own facts. (Odom, supra, 244 Cal.App.4th at p. 248.)