People v. Miranda

2 Cal. App. 5th 829, 206 Cal. Rptr. 3d 721
CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedAugust 23, 2016
DocketNo. B257245; No. B258930
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 2 Cal. App. 5th 829 (People v. Miranda) 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. Miranda, 2 Cal. App. 5th 829, 206 Cal. Rptr. 3d 721 (Cal. Ct. App. 2016).

Opinion

Opinion

YEGAN, J.

This case involves a razor-blade-shank attack by “Southside” gang members on a Los Angeles County jail inmate who refused to stab another inmate at the gang’s behest. Humberto Miranda, Felix Vega, and Isaac Rangel appeal from the judgment entered after a jury trial. All were convicted of assault with a deadly weapon (count 1; Pen. Code, § 245, subd. (a)(1));1 assault by means of force likely to produce great bodily injury (count 2; § 245, former subd. (a)(1), now subd. (a)(4)); and battery with serious bodily injury (count 3; § 243, subd. (d)). Codefendant Chris DeLeon was acquitted. As to each appellant, the jury found true great bodily injury allegations (§ 12022.7, subd. (a)) and gang enhancements (§ 186.22, [832]*832subd. (b)(1)(A) & (Q). As to Miranda, the jury found true an allegation that, in the commission of battery with serious bodily injury, he had personally used a “knife and razor.” (§ 12022, subd. (b)(1).) Vega and Rangel admitted prior felony convictions.

Miranda was sentenced to prison for 17 years, to be served first before serving life sentences in another case. (See § 669.) Vega was sentenced to prison for 11 years four months, to be served consecutively to a prior sentence in another case of 37 years four months. The aggregate term for both cases was 48 years eight months. Rangel was sentenced to prison for seven years four months, to be served consecutively to a prior sentence in another case of 25 years. The aggregate term for both cases was 32 years four months.

Appellants argue that the evidence is insufficient to support the gang enhancements. In addition, they argue that the trial court erroneously (1) denied their Wheeler-Batson motions, (2) instructed the jury during jury selection, and (3) excluded evidence of the guilty pleas of three codefendants. Vega claims that the trial court erroneously limited his closing argument to the jury. Finally, Vega and Rangel contend that the trial court erroneously sentenced them and failed to calculate the custody credits to which they are entitled. Only the final contention has merit. Miranda makes no claim of sentencing error, but his sentence is also erroneous. We vacate appellants’ convictions on count 2 and reverse their sentences on counts 1 and 3. We remand the matter with directions to resentence them and calculate Vega’s and Rangel’s custody credits. In all other respects, we affirm.

Facts

Appellants and DeLeon were members of different Southern California local criminal street gangs. Estuardo Tobias, the victim, claimed that he was not a gang member. In June 2008 Tobias, appellants, and DeLeon were inmates in “Dorm 816” at the North County Correctional Facility (NCCF) of the Los Angeles County jail. The dorm housed approximately 65 inmates, all of whom were Hispanic.

In the presence of Miranda, Rangel, and DeLeon, Vega ordered Tobias to cut another inmate with a knife. Tobias refused. Vega replied, “ ‘All right. If you don’t do it, you got that coming.’ ” Later that same day, Vega told Tobias that someone wanted to speak to him upstairs. Tobias understood that he was going to see “Puppet,” “the gang member who was running the jail.” According to Tobias, “Puppet was the one who would give orders about who should get beat up and what should happen among the gang members . . . .”

[833]*833After Tobias walked upstairs, Vega started fighting with him and “tried to take [him] down on the ground.” Miranda, Rangel, DeLeon, and “not less than another five [persons]” ran toward Tobias. The other persons included gang members Edgar Centeno, Skary Paredes, and Ivan Toscano.

Appellants cut Tobias with razor blades attached to toothbrushes. Tobias was punched and kicked. “There were blows, but there were so many of them [that Tobias] couldn’t tell . . . who did what.” Someone said, “ ‘Cut him, but make sure that you’re getting him on the neck.’ ” “The last thing [Tobias] remember[ed] was that someone said, ‘Hide. They’re coming.’ ”

Sheriff’s deputies arrived and stopped the fight. A deputy testified that he “saw five people attacking one person.” The deputy subsequently testified: “There could have been more.” “[I]t looked like there was approximately five or more.” Another deputy testified that he “saw approximately five inmates” surrounding Tobias and “punching him repeatedly in a violent manner.” “It could have been more, but I’m pretty certain that it was at minimum five.” Neither deputy saw the beginning of the fight.

Tobias was “drenched in blood.” Blood was “squirting from his wrist onto the walls.” He had “six or seven different injuries.”

Appellants had blood on their clothing and bodies. The DNA profile of blood found on Vega and Rangel matched the DNA profile of Tobias’s blood.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
2 Cal. App. 5th 829, 206 Cal. Rptr. 3d 721, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-miranda-calctapp-2016.