People v. Allen

106 Cal. Rptr. 2d 253, 88 Cal. App. 4th 986, 2001 Daily Journal DAR 4215, 2001 Cal. App. LEXIS 326
California Court of Appeal·Decided April 30, 2001·No. C031985·Published·Cited by 24 cases

Opinion

Opinion

KOLKEY, J.

In this appeal, we consider whether the fine described under Penal Code section 1202.4, subdivision (a)(2), 1 which is to be “in the form of a penalty assessment in accordance with Section 1464,” requires an underlying fine upon which it can be assessed.

Defendant Linda Anne Allen pleaded no contest to one count of burglary. 2 Sentenced to the upper term of six years, she was also ordered to pay (1) a $2,000 restitution fine pursuant to section 1202.4, subdivision (b); (2) a $2,000 parole revocation fine pursuant to section 1202.45, which was suspended in accordance with the provisions of that section; and (3) another $2,000 “fine in the form of a penalty assessment” pursuant to section 1202.4, subdivision (a)(2).

On appeal, defendant challenges as unauthorized the $2,000 fine in the form of a penalty assessment pursuant to section 1202.4, subdivision (a)(2). We conclude that a fine “in the form of a penalty assessment” under subdivision (a)(2) 3 requires an underlying fine upon which the penalty can be assessed. No such underlying fine was imposed in this case: The two other fines imposed are not subject to penalty assessments. (See § 1202.4, subd. (e).) Accordingly, we shall modify the judgment by striking that fine. However, because we further conclude that the trial court could have *989 imposed a like fine under section 672, which, in turn, is subject to a penalty assessment, we shall remand the matter to the trial court to allow it to determine whether to impose such a fine, plus penalty assessments, in an amount not to exceed $2,000.

Discussion

I. The Challenge to the Fine Under Subdivision (a)(2)

A. The Applicable Statutes

Section 1202.4 is one of the statutes that implement Proposition 8, passed by the voters in 1982, which establishes, among other things, a constitutional right for every crime victim “who suffer[s] losses as a result of criminal activity” to obtain “restitution from the persons convicted of the crimes for losses they suffer.” (Cal. Const., art. I, § 28, subd. (b); People v. Broussard (1993) 5 Cal.4th 1067, 1072-1075 [22 Cal.Rptr.2d 278, 856 P.2d 1134]; Stats. 1983, ch. 1092, §§ 135.2, 320.1, pp. 3998, 4058; Stats. 1994, ch. 1106, §3.)

At the time of the offense in this case, section 1202.4, as amended, 4 provided in pertinent part:

“(a)(1) It is the intent of the Legislature that a victim of crime who incurs any economic loss as a result of the commission of a crime shall receive restitution directly from any defendant convicted of that crime.
“(2) Upon a person being convicted of any crime in the State of California, the court shall order the defendant to pay a fine in the form of a penalty assessment in accordance with Section 1464.
“(3) The court, in addition to any other penalty provided or imposed under the law, shall order the defendant to pay both of the following:
“(A) A restitution fine in accordance with subdivision (b). [5]
*990 “(B) Restitution to the victim or victims, if any, in accordance with subdivision (f), which shall be enforceable as if the order were a civil judgment.... [¶] ... [¶]
“(e) The restitution fine shall not be subject to penalty assessments as provided in Section 1464, and shall be deposited in the Restitution Fund in the State Treasury.”

Accordingly, section 1202.4 contemplates three different assessments: (1) a “fine in the form of a penalty assessment in accordance with Section 1464” (subd. (a)(2)); (2) a “restitution fine in accordance with subdivision (b)” (subd. (a)(3)(A)); and (3) restitution to the victim(s) (subds. (a)(1), (a)(3)(B), (f)).

B. The Statutory Construction of Subdivision (a)(2)

Defendant challenges the trial court’s imposition of the $2,000 “fine in the form of a penalty assessment” pursuant to subdivision (a)(2). She argues that subdivision (a)(2) “does not authorize an independent monetary penalty . . . ,” and that there must be an underlying “fine, penalty or forfeiture” before a penalty assessment may be imposed pursuant to that subdivision. In this case, she argues, there is no underlying fine that could be subject to a penalty assessment.

The Attorney General contends, on the other hand, that the Legislature intended that subdivision (a)(2) establish a “freestanding fine.”

The parties have identified no judicial authority which decides the issue, and we have found none.

1. The Statutory Language

“When interpreting a statute our primary task is to determine the Legislature’s intent. [Citation.] In doing so we turn first to statutory language, since the words the Legislature chose are the best indicators of its intent.” (Freedom Newspapers, Inc. v. Orange County Employees Retirement System (1993) 6 Cal.4th 821, 826 [25 Cal.Rptr.2d 148, 863 P.2d 218]; *991 accord, Hsu v. Abbara (1995) 9 Cal.4th 863, 871 [39 Cal.Rptr.2d 824, 891 P.2d 804].) We give the words of the statute their ordinary meaning. (People v. Birkett (1999) 21 Cal.4th 226, 231 [87 Cal.Rptr.2d 205, 980 P.2d 912].) “Indeed, the most powerful safeguard for the courts’ adherence to their constitutional role of construing, rather than writing, statutes is to rely on the statute’s plain language.” (Khajavi v. Feather River Anesthesia Medical Group (2000) 84 Cal.App.4th 32, 46 [100 Cal.Rptr.2d 627].) Accordingly, “[w]e must follow the statute’s plain meaning, if such appears, unless doing so would lead to absurd results the Legislature could not have intended.” (People v. Birkett, supra, 21 Cal.4th at p. 231.)

Subdivision (a)(2) provides that “the court shall order the defendant to pay a fine in the form of a penalty assessment in accordance with Section 1464.”

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People v. Allen, 106 Cal. Rptr. 2d 253, 88 Cal. App. 4th 986, 2001 Daily Journal DAR 4215, 2001 Cal. App. LEXIS 326 (Cal. Ct. App. 2001).

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