People v. Duffy

CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedJune 26, 2020
DocketC089670
StatusPublished

This text of People v. Duffy (People v. Duffy) 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. Duffy, (Cal. Ct. App. 2020).

Opinion

Filed 6/26/20 CERTIFIED FOR PARTIAL PUBLICATION*

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA THIRD APPELLATE DISTRICT (Yolo) ----

THE PEOPLE, C089670

Plaintiff and Respondent, (Super. Ct. No. CRF182023)

v.

SEAN MICHAEL DUFFY,

Defendant and Appellant.

APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of Yolo County, Timothy L. Fall, Judge. Affirmed as modified.

Gillian Black, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant.

Xavier Becerra, Attorney General, Lance E. Winters, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Michael P. Farrell, Assistant Attorney General, Eric L. Christoffersen and Ivan P. Marrs, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent.

* Pursuant to California Rules of Court, rules 8.1105 and 8.1110, this opinion is certified for publication with the exception of part I of the Discussion.

1 A jury found defendant Sean Michael Duffy guilty of numerous counts related to his possession of a stolen firearm and the trial court found true three prior prison term enhancement allegations. The trial court sentenced defendant to an aggregate term of five years, which included three consecutive one-year terms for each of the prior prison term enhancements. Defendant contends on appeal that this court should strike the one-year prior prison term enhancements in light of newly enacted Senate Bill No. 136, which amended Penal Code1 section 667.5, subdivision (b) by limiting the offenses that qualify for the enhancement. The People concede the three prior prison term enhancements should be stricken. Defendant also contends three of the counts describe alternate ways of committing the same offense -- possession of a concealed firearm in a vehicle -- and, thus, are not separate offenses. Therefore two of those three convictions must be stricken. We agree. Accordingly, we shall strike the prior prison term enhancements and convictions on counts 4 and 6.2 The matter is remanded for resentencing. As modified, the judgment is affirmed. BACKGROUND Responding to an early morning call, Woodland police officers searched the car defendant had been sleeping in. Under a sweater on the driver’s seat, they found a .45- caliber handgun in a holster. The gun was loaded and stolen. Defendant was charged with possession of a controlled substance while armed with a loaded firearm (count 1); possession of a firearm by a felon (count 2); possession of ammunition by a felon (count 3); carrying a concealed firearm on his person after a

1 Undesignated statutory references are to the Penal Code. 2 Defendant also contends there is insufficient evidence to support his conviction on count 4. Since we are striking the conviction, we need not address this claim.

2 felony conviction (count 4); carrying a concealed firearm in a vehicle when the firearm is stolen (count 5); carrying a concealed firearm in a vehicle when the firearm is loaded and the person is not the registered owner (count 6); receiving stolen property (count 7); possession of a controlled substance (count 8); and possession of burglary tools (count 9). It was further alleged defendant committed the offenses while released on bail and defendant had served three prior prison terms. A jury found defendant guilty on counts 2 through 7 and not guilty as to counts 1, 8, and 9. The jury also found the three prior prison term enhancements true and the on bail enhancement not true. The trial court sentenced defendant to an aggregate term of five years including one-year terms on each of the three prior prison enhancements. The trial court also awarded defendant a total of 856 days of presentence custody credit. DISCUSSION I Senate Bill No. 136 Defendant contends the three one-year prior prison term enhancements imposed pursuant to section 667.5, subdivision (b), must be stricken pursuant to the amendment to section 667.5, subdivision (b) by Senate Bill No. 136, effective January 1, 2020. The People agree. Signed by the Governor on October 8, 2019, and effective January 1, 2020, Senate Bill No. 136 amends section 667.5, subdivision (b), to eliminate the one-year prior prison term enhancement for most prior convictions. (Stats. 2019, ch. 590, § 1.) An exception, not applicable here, is made for a qualifying prior conviction on a sexually violent offense, as defined in Welfare and Institutions Code section 6600, subdivision (b). Because Senate Bill No. 136 became effective before defendant’s judgment becomes final, we agree with the parties that the amended law will apply to him retroactively. (See In re Estrada (1965) 63 Cal.2d 740, 744-745 [absent evidence of contrary legislative intent, ameliorative criminal statutes apply to all cases not final when

3 statute takes effect].) Accordingly, defendant’s three section 667.5, subdivision (b) enhancements must be stricken. Because the trial court imposed the middle term at sentencing on count 2,3 we will direct the trial court to strike defendant’s prior prison term enhancements and “remand the matter for resentencing to allow the court to exercise its sentencing discretion in light of the changed circumstances.” (People v. Jennings (2019) 42 Cal.App.5th 664, 682.) II Section 25400 Defendant contends his three convictions under section 25400, counts 4, 5, and 6, are improper, as the statute describes a single offense, carrying a concealed firearm and he carried only a single concealed firearm. Thus, he argues, he can be convicted only once for that violation. The People concede that defendant cannot be convicted of the two offenses of carrying a concealed firearm in his vehicle, but argue carrying a concealed firearm on his person is a separate offense from carrying a concealed firearm in his vehicle, thus supporting two convictions under section 25400. Section 954 provides, in pertinent part, that “[a]n accusatory pleading may charge two or more different offenses connected together in their commission, or different statements of the same offense . . . under separate counts . . . . The prosecution is not required to elect between the different offenses or counts set forth in the accusatory pleading, but the defendant may be convicted of any number of the offenses charged . . . .” “Thus multiple charges and multiple convictions can be based on a single criminal act, if the charges allege separate offenses.” (People v. Muhammad (2007)

3 In concluding the middle term was the appropriate sentence, the trial court specifically noted as a factor that the enhancements added a significant amount of time to defendant’s sentence, “equal to what would be the most that could be imposed on any of the counts.”

4 157 Cal.App.4th 484, 490; see People v. Ryan (2006) 138 Cal.App.4th 360, 368.) However, section 954 “ ‘does not permit multiple convictions for a different statement of the same offense when it is based on the same act or course of conduct.’ ” (People v. Vidana (2016) 1 Cal.5th 632, 650.) That is, section 954 prohibits multiple convictions for the same offense based on alternate legal theories. (Vidana, at pp. 650-651.) “ ‘If only a single act is charged as the basis for multiple convictions, only one conviction can be affirmed, notwithstanding that the offenses are not necessarily included offenses. . . .’ ” (People v. Beamon (1973) 8 Cal.3d 625, 637.) We review, de novo, the issue of whether multiple convictions are proper under section 954. (People v. Villegas (2012) 205 Cal.App.4th 642, 646.) Defendant was charged with two counts of carrying a concealed weapon in a vehicle and one count of carrying a concealed weapon on his person, each based on a single act and firearm.

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People v. Beamon
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In Re Estrada
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People v. Ramon
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People v. Ryan
41 Cal. Rptr. 3d 277 (California Court of Appeal, 2006)
People v. Muhammad
68 Cal. Rptr. 3d 695 (California Court of Appeal, 2007)
People v. Gonzalez
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People v. Villegas
205 Cal. App. 4th 642 (California Court of Appeal, 2012)

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People v. Duffy, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-duffy-calctapp-2020.