Woman who refused to wear a mask found guilty of trespassing

LOS ANGELES — Marianne Campbell Smith’s defiance of anti-mask rules didn’t end at a Costa Mesa supermarket.

In an unusual move, Orange County prosecutors took her to trial.

On Wednesday, a jury found Smith, who is married to a sixth-generation heir of the Irvine development family, guilty of misdemeanor trespassing and obstructing a business or its customers.

It was the first mask-related criminal conviction in a county known for its vocal minority of anti-maskers who have staged oceanfront protests and picketed government meetings during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The jury took roughly an hour Wednesday afternoon to decide the case, which not only focused on the rights of a private business to enforce its policies but also on whether Smith’s refusal to wear a mask inside the store or leave was intended to interfere with and obstruct the business.

After the verdict was read, Judge John Zitny sentenced Smith to a $200 fine, 40 hours of community service and a year of informal probation. Smith, who wore a plastic face shield in the courtroom, was also ordered to stay away from the market’s Costa Mesa location for a year.

“I’m innocent,” Smith said as she walked out of the courthouse. “Even though the verdict was guilty, I committed no crimes except to be able to breathe oxygen. I have a medical disability, and it was not honored at Mother’s Market that day.”

Orange County law enforcement has largely taken an educational approach to masks and other COVID-19 regulations, advising people to follow the rules rather than citing them.

In Costa Mesa, face coverings have been required in public since April 2020.

A Costa Mesa bar owner is the only other person in the county to be criminally charged with flouting COVID restrictions. That case was dismissed in August.

Assistant Dist. Atty. Susan Price told jurors in a closing statement that Smith entered the market with the intention of being disruptive.

Price pointed to surveillance video showing Smith inside the busy market waving at anti-mask protesters gathered outside.