People v. Barton

244 Cal. Rptr. 3d 489, 32 Cal. App. 5th 1088
CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal, 5th District
DecidedMarch 8, 2019
DocketF076599
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 244 Cal. Rptr. 3d 489 (People v. Barton) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Court of Appeal, 5th District primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People v. Barton, 244 Cal. Rptr. 3d 489, 32 Cal. App. 5th 1088 (Cal. Ct. App. 2019).

Opinion

PEÑA, J.

*1090This case recalls the proverb, "You can't have your cake and eat it too." The question presented: Where a defendant negotiates a plea for a *1091stipulated sentence and waives the right to appeal the sentence, may the defendant take advantage of a favorable sentencing law enacted thereafter (which may otherwise apply retroactively under ordinary circumstances)? We think not. In reaching this conclusion, we part company with our colleagues in Division One of the Fourth District Court of Appeal, who arrived at a different result in *491People v. Wright (2019) 31 Cal.App.5th 749, 242 Cal.Rptr.3d 837.

Deanna Twilla Barton (defendant) pleaded guilty to furnishing methamphetamine ( Health & Saf. Code, § 11379, subd. (a) ) and maintaining a place for the sale of a controlled substance (id ., § 11366). (Undesignated statutory references are to the Health and Safety Code.) For enhancement purposes, she admitted two prior convictions under section 11379. As part of her plea agreement, she waived her appeal rights. In return, additional charges were dismissed and she received a stipulated prison sentence of eight years eight months, which included a pair of three-year enhancements for the drug-related priors (see former § 11370.2, subd. (c) ).

Defendant entered her plea on September 25, 2017. She was sentenced on October 23, 2017. In the interim, on October 11, 2017, Governor Brown approved Senate Bill No. 180 (2017-2018 Reg. Sess.) (Senate Bill 180), which went into effect on January 1, 2018. Senate Bill 180 amended former section 11370.2 by eliminating its three-year enhancements for most drug-related prior convictions. The then-pending legislation was not discussed on the record in the proceedings below.

In reliance on the " Estrada rule" (see In re Estrada (1965) 63 Cal.2d 740, 748, 48 Cal.Rptr. 172, 408 P.2d 948 ), defendant contends Senate Bill 180 is retroactive and thus invalidates the portion of her sentence imposed pursuant to former section 11370.2. She seeks to have the enhancements vacated, thereby reducing her prison sentence by six years. The People concede the issue of retroactivity but dispute her entitlement to relief. We conclude defendant's waiver of appellate rights forecloses consideration of her claim and requires dismissal of the appeal.

The People argue defendant's claim should be resolved in a habeas proceeding, which would allow for a factual determination regarding "whether the parties' negotiations included an agreement that [her] sentence would remain fixed despite any amendments to the relevant law ...." This argument overlooks the holdings of People v. Panizzon (1996) 13 Cal.4th 68, 51 Cal.Rptr.2d 851, 913 P.2d 1061 ( Panizzon ), which we find to be controlling and dispositive. Despite defendant's acknowledgement of Panizzon , the case is not discussed in the People's briefing (although it is *1092cited for an unrelated point). Defendant asks us to recognize an exception to Panizzon based on her particular circumstances; the People fail to address the issue.

The California Supreme Court has distinguished between general and specific waivers of appellate rights. As we will discuss, a general waiver leaves open the possibility that future events may deprive one party of the full benefit of its bargain. The parties can safeguard against such outcomes by inserting specific terms into their agreement. The plea agreement in this case contains the type of language that Panizzon found to constitute a specific waiver of the right to appeal " 'future sentencing error.' " ( Panizzon , supra , 13 Cal.4th at p. 85, 51 Cal.Rptr.2d 851, 913 P.2d 1061.) Where, as here, the parties' agreement includes a specified prison term and a waiver of the right to appeal the sentence, the waiver precludes future challenges to the legality of the agreed-upon period of confinement. ( Id . at p. 86, 51 Cal.Rptr.2d 851, 913 P.2d 1061.) Therefore, we dismiss the appeal.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

This case arises from events occurring while defendant's son was incarcerated at the Sierra Conservation Center in Tuolumne *492County. Defendant was reportedly "involved in preparing cards laced with methamphetamine and then placing those cards into the US mail to be sent to the [prison]." On February 7, 2015, she was found in possession of methamphetamine and a "meth pipe" while attempting to visit her son. On the same date, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at her residence and seized "over 240 grams of methamphetamine ... plus a scale."

Defendant was charged with possession of methamphetamine in a prison facility ( Pen. Code, § 4573.6 ; count I), conspiracy to send methamphetamine into a prison via mail (id. , §§ 182, subd. (a)(1), 4573; count II), furnishing methamphetamine in violation of section 11379 (count III), maintaining a place for the sale of methamphetamine in violation of section 11366 (count IV), bringing a controlled substance and associated paraphernalia into a prison facility ( Pen. Code, § 4573 ; count V), and furnishing methamphetamine to a person held in custody (id. , § 4573.9; count VI). In relation to count III and for purposes of former section 11370.2, defendant was alleged to have suffered two prior convictions under section 11379. She was further alleged to have served a prior prison term ( Pen. Code, § 667.5, subd. (b) ).

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
244 Cal. Rptr. 3d 489, 32 Cal. App. 5th 1088, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-barton-calctapp5d-2019.