People v. Diaz CA5

California Court of Appeal·Decided April 25, 2014·No. F064090M·Unpublished

Opinion

Filed 4/25/14 P. v. Diaz CA5

NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 8.1115(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

FIFTH APPELLATE DISTRICT

THE PEOPLE, F064090 Plaintiff and Respondent, (Super. Ct. No. VCF225602A) v.

CARLOS ADRIAN DIAZ, ORDER MODIFYING OPINION AND DENYING REHEARING Defendant and Appellant. [NO CHANGE IN JUDGMENT]

THE PEOPLE, F064366 Plaintiff and Respondent, (Super. Ct. No. VCF225602B v.

ALEJANDRO CISNEROS,

Defendant and Appellant.

THE COURT: It is ordered that the opinion filed herein on April 17, 2014, be modified in the following particulars: On page 17, following the fourth paragraph commencing “The record reflects,” the following paragraphs are inserted:

The same analysis is equally applicable to Diaz’s sentencing. At the time of sentencing, Diaz failed to request the trial court to state its reasons for consecutive sentencing. This failure to object constitutes a forfeiture of the issue. (People v. de Soto, supra, 54 Cal.App.4th at pp. 8-9.)

Regardless, there was no ineffective assistance of counsel in this regard. As we noted, at the time of Diaz’s sentencing, there was considerable discussion and argument about whether concurrent or consecutive sentences should be imposed. Clearly, the trial court was aware of its discretionary power to impose consecutive or concurrent terms; Diaz’s counsel argued for concurrent terms; and instead the trial court exercised its discretion to impose consecutive terms. On this record, Diaz cannot establish that he would have received a more favorable result and, consequently, he cannot establish prejudice. (Williams v. Taylor, supra, 529 U.S. at pp. 391, 394.) Absent prejudice, there can be no ineffective assistance of counsel. (Jackson, supra, 3 Cal.4th at p. 604.)

There is no change in the judgment.

Appellant Carlos Adrian Diaz’s petition for rehearing is denied.

_____________________ CORNELL, Acting P.J.

WE CONCUR:

_____________________ GOMES, J.

_____________________ DETJEN, J.

2. Filed 4/17/14 P. v. Diaz CA5 (unmodified version)

NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 8.1115(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.

THE PEOPLE, F064090 Plaintiff and Respondent, (Super. Ct. No. VCF225602A) v.

CARLOS ADRIAN DIAZ, OPINION Defendant and Appellant.

THE PEOPLE, F064366 Plaintiff and Respondent, (Super. Ct. No. VCF225602B v.

APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of Tulare County. Darryl B. Ferguson, Judge. Cheryl Rae Anderson, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant Carlos Adrian Diaz. Kim Malcheski, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant Alejandro Cisneros. Kamala D. Harris, Attorney General, Dane R. Gillette, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Michael P. Farrell, Assistant Attorney General, Carlos A. Martinez and Wanda Hill Rouzan, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent. -ooOoo- A jury convicted appellants Carlos Adrian Diaz and Alejandro Cisneros of attempted murder and carjacking and found several enhancements true. They challenge the convictions and the true findings on multiple grounds. They also contend the trial court erred in multiple respects at sentencing. We agree with some, but not all, of their contentions. As a result, we will affirm the convictions on the substantive offenses, strike some of the true findings on the enhancements, and remand for resentencing. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL SUMMARY We will focus our summary on the facts necessary for the resolution of the issues raised here. On December 13, 2008, Samuel Topete met up with Cisneros at a friend’s house in Strathmore. Topete was driving his girlfriend’s white Cougar. At the friend’s house, Topete, Cisneros and Alex Marquez passed the afternoon drinking and smoking marijuana. Eventually, Diaz joined the other men. Sometime later all the men left in the white Cougar and headed to Tulare, where they drove around. They ended up at a party for a while and then Topete, Cisneros, Diaz and others left the party, with Topete driving. Topete drove to a combination gas station and convenience store where he intended to fill up with gas and buy more beer. Topete got out of the car to pay for the gas and buy the beer. When he returned, he noticed a car with special rims pull up and park. Diaz and Cisneros got out of the Cougar and headed toward the car.

2. Derrick Little was the driver of the 1988 Fleetwood Cadillac Coupe that Topete had noticed. The car had a custom grill and custom rims and tires. The car also had a custom sound system that Little was playing loudly as he drove into the parking lot. Little stopped in the area by a phone booth and opened his door, leaving his engine running. He intended to “hop out” long enough to hand an acquaintance a few dollars. Before Little could leave the car, Cisneros and Diaz approached him and one of them, probably Diaz, stated, “we’re going to take this fucking car.” As Little started to argue, Cisneros slid into the car. Little struggled with Cisneros, while Diaz was outside the car “hitting” Little from behind; the hits were stab wounds. Suddenly, Cisneros pulled out a gun and tried to point it at Little; Little deflected the gun, but did not touch it. The gun went off and a bullet went through the roof of Little’s car. Because he was unarmed, Little decided to back away from Cisneros. When he did so, he turned and Diaz stabbed him in the chest. Cisneros drove off alone in the Cadillac. Diaz was unable to get inside the passenger side of the Cadillac because the door was locked, so he ran back to Topete’s car. Topete followed the Cadillac. Topete flagged down Cisneros, who stopped, and Topete told Diaz he had to get out of his car. Diaz got out of the Cougar and climbed into the Cadillac with Cisneros. The attack left Little with three knife wounds and a punctured lung and artery, as well as a number of surgical scars from the multiple procedures he underwent during a month-long hospital stay. At the time of trial, Little still suffered from limited mobility in his right arm. At the hospital, Detective James Haney attempted to interview Little. Little identified Cisneros from a photo lineup, but he was heavily sedated. Haney met with Little again after he was released from the hospital. Little confirmed his identification of Cisneros as one of his assailants; he also identified Diaz as the second assailant from a photo lineup.

3. Haney also interviewed Topete, who told him about the events of December 13, 2008. Haney contacted Cisneros, who denied knowing Topete and denied any involvement in the attack on Little or the taking of the Cadillac. Before being taken into custody, Cisneros had told Joel Ornelas that he needed a place to stay because law enforcement was looking for him. When Ornelas asked why, Cisneros admitted shooting at a man who tried to stop him from taking his Cadillac. Cisneros also admitted abandoning the Cadillac in a field between Strathmore and Lindsay, where it was later found. Once he was taken into custody, Cisneros admitted he knew Topete and had gone to Tulare with him on December 13, 2008; he did not admit to any other actions. Haney also arrested Diaz. On December 18, 2009, an information was filed against Cisneros and Diaz.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

People v. Diaz CA5, (Cal. Ct. App. 2014).

People v. Diaz CA5 (People v. Diaz CA5) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related

Strickland v. Washington
466 U.S. 668 (Supreme Court, 1984)
Williams v. Taylor
529 U.S. 362 (Supreme Court, 2000)
People v. Mesa
277 P.3d 743 (California Supreme Court, 2012)
People v. Ahmed
264 P.3d 822 (California Supreme Court, 2011)
People v. Lee
738 P.2d 752 (California Supreme Court, 1987)
In Re Jackson
835 P.2d 371 (California Supreme Court, 1992)
People v. Velasquez
606 P.2d 341 (California Supreme Court, 1980)
People v. Pope
590 P.2d 859 (California Supreme Court, 1979)
In Re Chapman
273 P.2d 817 (California Supreme Court, 1954)
People v. Cain
892 P.2d 1224 (California Supreme Court, 1995)
People v. Rincon-Pineda
538 P.2d 247 (California Supreme Court, 1975)
People v. Harrison
768 P.2d 1078 (California Supreme Court, 1989)
People v. Morante
975 P.2d 1071 (California Supreme Court, 1999)
People v. Proctor
842 P.2d 1100 (California Supreme Court, 1992)
People v. Musselwhite
954 P.2d 475 (California Supreme Court, 1998)
Pitchess v. Superior Court
522 P.2d 305 (California Supreme Court, 1974)
People v. Memro
905 P.2d 1305 (California Supreme Court, 1995)
People v. Perez
831 P.2d 1159 (California Supreme Court, 1992)
People v. Kipp
956 P.2d 1169 (California Supreme Court, 1998)
People v. Frederick G.
96 Cal. App. 3d 353 (California Court of Appeal, 1979)