People v. Billy

CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedDecember 9, 2024
DocketA169671
StatusPublished

This text of People v. Billy (People v. Billy) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People v. Billy, (Cal. Ct. App. 2024).

Opinion

Filed 12/9/24 CERTIFIED FOR PARTIAL PUBLICATION*

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

FIRST APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION FIVE

THE PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent, A169671 v. ANTHONY JORDAN BILLY, (Mendocino County Super. Ct. Nos. Defendant and Appellant. 22CR02889/23CR01265)

Defendant and appellant Anthony Jordan Billy was convicted of driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI) with three or more DUI offenses in the prior 10 years (Veh. Code, §§ 23152, subd. (b) & 23550, subd. (a)).1 Under section 23552, subdivision (a), if a person convicted under section 23550 receives probation, “the court shall impose as [a] condition[] of probation that the person be confined in a county jail for at least 180 days.” The trial court granted Billy probation, imposed a condition that he serve 180 days in county jail, and imposed an additional probation condition that he complete a residential alcohol treatment program. The court deemed that the residential treatment condition was satisfied by Billy’s voluntary pre- sentence stay at a residential rehabilitation program. It did not credit the

* Pursuant to California Rules of Court, rules 8.1105(b) and 8.1110, this

opinion is certified for publication with the exception of part II.B.

1 Except where otherwise indicated, all statutory references are to the

Vehicle Code.

1 time he spent in that program against his 180-day jail sentence or allow Billy to serve the 180-day jail sentence in a rehabilitation facility. On appeal, Billy contends: (1) Penal Code section 2900.5 entitled him to presentence custody credits for the time he voluntarily spent in residential alcohol treatment; (2) the trial court erroneously concluded that it lacked authority to order him to serve the mandatory 180-day jail term through an additional stay at a rehabilitation facility; and (3) the minute order must be amended to reflect the court’s oral pronouncement that the execution of certain fines was conditionally suspended. In the published portion of our opinion, we conclude that Billy’s first two contentions lack merit. The trial court was required by section 23552 to impose a probation condition that Billy be “confined in a county jail for at least 180 days,” without credit for his voluntary pre-plea stay in a residential alcohol treatment facility and without allowing him to serve the mandatory minimum jail term through a stay at a rehabilitation facility imposed as a condition of probation. In the unpublished portion of our opinion, we agree that the minute order does not accurately reflect the court’s oral pronouncement regarding the suspension of fines. We will therefore affirm the judgment but direct the court to amend the minute order accordingly. I. FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY A. Case No. 22CR02889 In January 2023, Billy entered into a negotiated plea agreement in Mendocino County Superior Court case number 22CR02889. Pursuant to that agreement, he pled no contest to charges that he drove with a blood- alcohol content of 0.08 percent or more (§ 23152, subd. (b)) on both October 3, 2022, and October 16, 2022. He also admitted that he had another DUI

2 conviction within the previous 10 years (§ 23540). The trial court placed Billy on probation for 60 months. B. Case No. 23CR01265 In June 2023, the Mendocino County District Attorney filed a petition to revoke Billy’s probation in Case No. 22CR02889 and a new felony complaint in Mendocino County Superior Court case number 23CR01265. An Information filed later that month charged Billy with the following crimes committed in June 2023: (1) driving while under the influence of alcohol with three or more DUI convictions within the prior 10 years (§§ 23152, subd. (b) & 23550, subd. (a); count 1); (2) driving with a license suspended due to a prior DUI conviction (§ 14601.2, subd. (a); count 2); and (3) unlawfully operating a vehicle without an interlock ignition device (§ 23247, subd. (e); count 3). The Information alleged that Billy committed count 1 with a blood- alcohol content of 0.15 percent or higher (§ 23578) and, as to count 2, that he previously committed a misdemeanor violation of section 14601.2, subdivision (a). In June 2023, Billy waived the preliminary hearing. The trial court stated that if he entered into a plea agreement, the court would “very likely impose a minimum of 180 days” but would “authorize that he serve any custodial time in an approved residential treatment program [and receive] credit for every day” of the program if he completed it. In July 2023, Billy voluntarily entered the Tule River Alcoholism Program (TRAP), a residential rehabilitation program. In August 2023, Billy pled no contest to all three counts and admitted the associated allegations. The trial court accepted his plea and stated that the court had indicated in chambers that if Billy pleaded guilty or no contest, “the court would grant formal probation for five years with a minimum of 180

3 days in jail that could be satisfied by completion [of] a residential treatment program.” The court found Billy in violation of probation in Case No. 22CR02889 and set the matter for sentencing. The probation officer’s presentence report recommended that Billy be placed on formal probation for 60 months with the condition that he “serve the mandatory minimum of 180 days in jail with credit for 6 actual days served.” The report opined that Billy could not serve the jail term in a rehabilitation facility: “Although section 2900.5 of the Penal Code allows defendants to serve their jail commitments in residential treatment, it appears People v. [Municipal Court (Hinton) (1983) 149 Cal.App.3d 951 (Hinton)] and People v. Darnell (1990) [224 Cal.App.3d 806 (Darnell)] are still valid and apply in regard to mandatory minimum jail terms for DUI offenses. These cases . . . state that Section 23206 (renumbered as 23600 in 1998) of the Vehicle Code takes precedence over the more general statute of section 2900.5 of the Penal Code; in that any mandatory minimum jail term must be served in actual confinement (county jail), not residential treatment.” (Italics omitted.) At Billy’s sentencing hearing in October 2023, the parties disputed whether Billy was statutorily required to serve a minimum of 180 days in jail or could serve the 180 days in a rehabilitation facility. At a continued sentencing hearing in November 2023, the trial court stated that it no longer believed that Billy could serve his 180-day jail term at a rehabilitation facility. Defense counsel argued that Billy had relied on the court’s earlier representations to the contrary in entering his plea, and the court granted Billy’s motion to withdraw his plea. On December 14, 2023, Billy entered into a new agreement in which he again pleaded no contest to all counts and admitted the associated

4 allegations. The plea agreement provided that he would be placed on probation for five years and ordered to serve 180 days in county jail but, if authorized by the court, the 180 days could be served in a rehabilitation facility. Based on this plea, the court again found Billy in violation of his probation in Case No. 22CR02889. At Billy’s sentencing hearing on January 18, 2024, the trial court recognized that Billy had completed 180 days of “in-house treatment” at TRAP. The court concluded that it had no authority to credit Billy’s stay at TRAP against the mandatory 180-day jail term but stated that, if it did have such discretion, it would have given Billy the credits for his “faithful participation in this treatment program and continuing to receive treatment in that program.” The trial court suspended imposition of sentence and granted Billy formal probation for five years on specified terms and conditions, including that he serve 180 days in county jail with credit for six (actual) days of time served.

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Bluebook (online)
People v. Billy, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-billy-calctapp-2024.