People v. Ramirez

246 Cal. Rptr. 3d 897, 35 Cal. App. 5th 55
California Court of Appeal, 5th District·Decided May 8, 2019·No. G056522·Published·Cited by 57 cases

Opinion

ARONSON, J.

A jury found defendants Luis Alberto Ramirez and Jose Roberto Armendariz committed two gang-related murders when they were juveniles. The trial court originally sentenced Ramirez to life without the possibility of parole, plus 65 years to life, and it sentenced Armendariz to 90 years to life. A lengthy appeals process ensued. Eventually, this court reversed the sentences and remanded the matter to the trial court for resentencing. (See People v.

*900Ramirez (Aug. 27, 2014, G044703) [nonpub. opn.] )

Following remand, Proposition 57 was enacted. Among other provisions, Proposition 57 eliminated direct filing of criminal charges against juveniles in adult court. Instead, before filing in adult court, the prosecution must file a motion in juvenile court asking the court to transfer the minor to adult court. "Only if the juvenile court transfers the matter to adult court can the juvenile be tried and sentenced as an adult." ( People v. Superior Court (Lara) (2018) 4 Cal.5th 299, 303, 228 Cal.Rptr.3d 394, 410 P.3d 22 ( Lara ).) The California Supreme Court has held that Proposition 57 applies retroactively to all cases not yet final at the time it was enacted. ( Id. at p. 304, 228 Cal.Rptr.3d 394.). The high court also approved the following remedy for a Proposition 57 violation: The appellate court must conditionally reverse the judgment and remand the matter to the juvenile court to hold a transfer hearing. If the juvenile court determines it would have transferred the juvenile to adult court, the adult court must reinstate the convictions and sentence. If the juvenile court finds it would not have transferred the juvenile, the court will treat the convictions as juvenile adjudications and impose an appropriate disposition. ( Id . at pp. 310, 313, 228 Cal.Rptr.3d 394, 410 P.3d 22.)

Thereafter, defendants filed a motion requesting the superior court remand their case to the juvenile court per Proposition 57 and Lara . Over the prosecutor's objections, the court granted the motion and ordered the matter transferred to the juvenile court. The District Attorney sought review of the trial court's transfer order via writ and direct appeal. We summarily denied the District Attorney's petition for a writ of mandate or prohibition, leaving only the instant appeal.

Defendants filed a motion to dismiss the instant appeal, contending the trial court's transfer order is not appealable. We deny the motion to dismiss. Notwithstanding the fact this court reversed defendants' sentences, the transfer order is appealable under Penal Code section 1238, subdivision (a)(5), as an "order made after judgment, affecting the substantial rights of the people." Judgments were entered when the initial sentences were imposed. While the sentences were reversed and resentencing ordered, the resentencing will result in modified judgments, not new judgments. Because the transfer order affects the People's ability to enforce the modified judgements, it is appealable under Penal Code section 1238, subdivision (a)(5).

On the merits, the District Attorney contends the trial court lacked authority to order the matter transferred to the juvenile court because the transfer order exceeded the scope of the remittitur. In the remittitur, we ordered the trial court to resentence defendants. The District Attorney concedes that defendants are entitled to the benefit of Proposition 57. Per Lara , a juvenile entitled to the benefits of Proposition 57 generally cannot be sentenced in adult court unless the juvenile court has ordered the juvenile transferred to adult court. Thus, to effectuate the resentencing mandate in the remittitur, the trial court could properly consider the effects of Proposition 57 and, in most cases, order the matter transferred to the juvenile court to hold a transfer hearing. Accordingly, the trial court's transfer order did not exceed the scope of the remittitur.

The District Attorney also contends the trial court lacked the authority to transfer the matter to juvenile court because the juvenile court lacked jurisdiction to hold the transfer hearing. According to the District Attorney, the juvenile court has no jurisdiction over defendants, who were older *901than 25 years old at the time the trial court ordered the transfer. While the juvenile court has no continuing jurisdiction over defendants, it has jurisdiction to hold a transfer hearing involving defendants. In light of Proposition 57 and Lara , the trial court properly transferred the matter to the juvenile court to hold a transfer hearing. Accordingly, we affirm.

I

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

We summarized the facts of the underlying crimes in our prior opinion. Briefly, defendants were members of a criminal street gang when they confronted and exchanged insults with two rival gang members. Ramirez then pulled out a handgun, fired multiple shots and killed the two victims. Armendariz aided and abetted the murders. Ramirez and Armendariz were both 16 years old when the shooting occurred on August 27, 2007. (See People v. Ramirez (Aug. 27, 2014, G044703, 2014 WL 4239718) [nonpub. opn.].)

The defendants appealed after the trial court imposed lengthy sentences. This court reversed, concluding the sentences amounted to cruel and unusual punishment in light of defendants' youth at the time of the crimes. The California Supreme Court granted the Attorney General's petition for review, and remanded with instructions to vacate our decision and reconsider the matter in light of People v. Gutierrez (2014) 58 Cal.4th 1354, 171 Cal.Rptr.3d 421, 324 P.3d 245 ( Gutierrez ), which requires a sentencing court to consider youth-related factors. This court issued a revised opinion, and remanded the matter to the trial court to "resentence both defendants in accordance with the requirements outlined in Gutierrez ." ( See People v. Ramirez (Aug. 27, 2014, G044703, 2014 WL 4239718) [nonpub. opn.].)1

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

People v. Ramirez, 246 Cal. Rptr. 3d 897, 35 Cal. App. 5th 55 (Cal. Ct. App. 2019).

246 Cal. Rptr. 3d 897 (People v. Ramirez) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related

People v. Wong CA2/6
California Court of Appeal, 2025
People v. Blanton CA1/2
California Court of Appeal, 2025
People v. Williams CA6
California Court of Appeal, 2025
People v. Gallegos CA2/7
California Court of Appeal, 2025
People v. Archer CA1/2
California Court of Appeal, 2024
People v. Paul CA2/8
California Court of Appeal, 2024
People v. Esquivias
California Court of Appeal, 2024
People v. Romero CA6
California Court of Appeal, 2024
People v. Sirypangno CA4/1
California Court of Appeal, 2024
People v. Whitley CA6
California Court of Appeal, 2023
People v. Blackburn CA2/4
California Court of Appeal, 2023
People v. Orona CA1/2
California Court of Appeal, 2023
People v. Barraza CA2/8
California Court of Appeal, 2023
People v. Williams CA3
California Court of Appeal, 2023
People v. Guerrero CA2/8
California Court of Appeal, 2023
People v. Ramirez CA5
California Court of Appeal, 2023
People v. Ramirez CA4/3
California Court of Appeal, 2023
People v. Fontenot CA4/1
California Court of Appeal, 2023
People v. Butler CA3
California Court of Appeal, 2023
In re N.Z. CA2/6
California Court of Appeal, 2023