People v. Reed

137 P.3d 184, 45 Cal. Rptr. 3d 353, 38 Cal. 4th 1224
CourtCalifornia Supreme Court
DecidedJuly 3, 2006
DocketS136345
StatusPublished

This text of 137 P.3d 184 (People v. Reed) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People v. Reed, 137 P.3d 184, 45 Cal. Rptr. 3d 353, 38 Cal. 4th 1224 (Cal. 2006).

Opinion

45 Cal.Rptr.3d 353 (2006)
38 Cal.4th 1224
137 P.3d 184

The PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent,
v.
Vincent REED, Defendant and Appellant.

No. S136345.

Supreme Court of California.

July 3, 2006.

*354 John F. Schuck, Palo Alto, under appointment by the Supreme Court, for Defendant and Appellant.

Bill Lockyer, Attorney General, Manuel M. Medeiros, State Solicitor General, Robert R. Anderson, Chief Assistant Attorney *355 General, Gerald A. Engler, Assistant Attorney General, Stan Helfman, Melissa R. Krum and Jeffery M. Laurence, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent.

CHIN, J.

On January 24, 2004, two San Francisco police officers found defendant, Vincent Reed, a convicted felon, in possession of a loaded and concealed .25-caliber automatic pistol. In addition to other crimes not relevant here, he was charged with and convicted of (1) being a felon in possession of a firearm (Pen.Code, § 12021, subd. (a)(1)),[1] (2) carrying a concealed firearm (§ 12025, subd. (a)(2)), and (3) carrying a loaded firearm while in a public place (§ 12031, subd. (a)(2)(A)). The court sentenced him to prison for three years on the first count, including a prior prison term enhancement, and stayed the sentences on the remaining weapons counts. The Court of Appeal affirmed the judgment. Defendant contends he was improperly convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm in addition to the other weapons crimes.

In general, a person may be convicted of, although not punished for, more than one crime arising out of the same act or course of conduct. "In California, a single act or course of conduct by a defendant can lead to convictions `of any number of the offenses charged.' (§ 954, italics added; People v. Ortega (1998) 19 Cal.4th 686, 692, 80 Cal.Rptr.2d 489, 968 P.2d 48.)" (People v. Montoya (2004) 33 Cal.4th 1031, 1034, 16 Cal.Rptr.3d 902, 94 P.3d 1098.) Section 954 generally permits multiple conviction. Section 654 is its counterpart concerning punishment. It prohibits multiple punishment for the same "act or omission." When section 954 permits multiple conviction, but section 654 prohibits multiple punishment, the trial court must stay execution of sentence on the convictions for which multiple punishment is prohibited. (People v. Ortega, supra, at p. 692, 80 Cal.Rptr.2d 489, 968 P.2d 48; People v. Pearson (1986) 42 Cal.3d 351, 359-360, 228 Cal.Rptr. 509, 721 P.2d 595.) Here, the trial court stayed execution of sentence on two of the weapons convictions, so multiple punishment is not at issue. This case concerns only multiple conviction.

A judicially created exception to the general rule permitting multiple conviction "prohibits multiple convictions based on necessarily included offenses." (People v. Montoya, supra, 33 Cal.4th at p. 1034, 16 Cal.Rptr.3d 902, 94 P.3d 1098.) "[I]f a crime cannot be committed without also necessarily committing a lesser offense, the latter is a lesser included offense within the former." (People v. Lopez (1998) 19 Cal.4th 282, 288, 79 Cal.Rptr.2d 195, 965 P.2d 713.) Defendant argues that, as charged, being a felon in possession of a firearm is a lesser included offense of the other two weapons crimes, thus prohibiting conviction of the former crime.

The question whether one offense is necessarily included in another arises in various contexts. A common one is deciding whether a defendant charged with one crime may be convicted of a lesser uncharged crime. A defendant may be convicted of an uncharged crime if, but only if, the uncharged crime is necessarily included in the charged crime. (§ 1159; People v. Lohbauer (1981) 29 Cal.3d 364, 368-369, 173 Cal.Rptr. 453, 627 P.2d 183.) The reason for this rule is settled. "`This reasoning rests upon a constitutional basis: "Due process of law requires that an accused be advised of the charges against *356 him in order that he may have a reasonable opportunity to prepare and present his defense and not be taken by surprise by evidence offered at his trial." [Citation.]'" (People v. Lohbauer, supra, at p. 368, 173 Cal.Rptr. 453, 627 P.2d 183.) The required notice is provided as to any charged offense and any lesser offense that is necessarily committed when the charged offense is committed. (Id. at pp. 368-369, 173 Cal.Rptr. 453, 627 P.2d 183.)

We have applied two tests in determining whether an uncharged offense is necessarily included within a charged offense: the "elements" test and the "accusatory pleading" test. Under the elements test, if the statutory elements of the greater offense include all of the statutory elements of the lesser offense, the latter is necessarily included in the former. Under the accusatory pleading test, if the facts actually alleged in the accusatory pleading include all of the elements of the lesser offense, the latter is necessarily included in the former. (People v. Lopez, supra, 19 Cal.4th at pp. 288-289, 79 Cal.Rptr.2d 195, 965 P.2d 713.) Defendant does not claim that being a felon in possession of a firearm is necessarily included within the other weapons offenses under the elements test. He does, however, argue that it is necessarily included under the accusatory pleading test.

In this case, the amended information alleged as to all three weapons offenses that defendant was a convicted felon. Accordingly, as charged, defendant could not commit the crimes of carrying a concealed firearm and carrying a loaded firearm while in a public place without also being a felon in possession of a firearm. The Court of Appeal concluded, however, that the accusatory pleading test does not apply to determine whether a defendant may be convicted of multiple charged offenses. We granted defendant's petition for review to decide whether the Court of Appeal was correct.

Several opinions, including some from this court, have assumed, without discussion, that both the elements and the accusatory pleading tests apply in deciding whether multiple conviction of charged offenses is proper. But in each case, the assumption was unnecessary to the holding because each opinion either found the offenses not necessarily included or actually applied only the elements test. (People v. Sanchez (2001) 24 Cal.4th 983, 988, 103 Cal.Rptr.2d 698, 16 P.3d 118; People v. Ortega, supra, 19 Cal.4th at p. 698, 80 Cal.Rptr.2d 489, 968 P.2d 48; People v. Murphy (2005) 134 Cal.App.4th 1504, 1507-1508, 36 Cal.Rptr.3d 872; People v. Belmares (2003) 106 Cal.App.4th 19, 23, 130 Cal.Rptr.2d 400; People v. Strohman (2000) 84 Cal.App.4th 1313, 1316, 101 Cal. Rptr.2d 520; People v. Thomas (1991) 231 Cal.App.3d 299, 305, 282 Cal.Rptr. 258; People v. Nicholson (1979) 98 Cal.App.3d 617, 623, 159 Cal.Rptr. 766; see also People v. Ausbie

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Related

People v. Lohbauer
627 P.2d 183 (California Supreme Court, 1981)
People v. Lopez
965 P.2d 713 (California Supreme Court, 1998)
People v. Pearson
721 P.2d 595 (California Supreme Court, 1986)
People v. Wolcott
665 P.2d 520 (California Supreme Court, 1983)
People v. Rogers
486 P.2d 129 (California Supreme Court, 1971)
People v. Ortega
968 P.2d 48 (California Supreme Court, 1998)
People v. Guerrero
748 P.2d 1150 (California Supreme Court, 1988)
People v. Bouzas
807 P.2d 1076 (California Supreme Court, 1991)
People v. Thomas
231 Cal. App. 3d 299 (California Court of Appeal, 1991)
People v. Scheidt
231 Cal. App. 3d 162 (California Court of Appeal, 1991)
People v. Watterson
234 Cal. App. 3d 942 (California Court of Appeal, 1991)
People v. Nicholson
98 Cal. App. 3d 617 (California Court of Appeal, 1979)
People v. Solo
8 Cal. App. 3d 201 (California Court of Appeal, 1970)
People v. Johnson
5 Cal. App. 3d 844 (California Court of Appeal, 1970)
People v. Richardson
6 Cal. App. 3d 70 (California Court of Appeal, 1970)
People v. Murphy
36 Cal. Rptr. 3d 872 (California Court of Appeal, 2005)
People v. AUSBIE
20 Cal. Rptr. 3d 371 (California Court of Appeal, 2004)
People v. Strohman
101 Cal. Rptr. 2d 520 (California Court of Appeal, 2000)
People v. Belmares
130 Cal. Rptr. 2d 400 (California Court of Appeal, 2003)
People v. Padilla
119 Cal. Rptr. 2d 457 (California Court of Appeal, 2002)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
137 P.3d 184, 45 Cal. Rptr. 3d 353, 38 Cal. 4th 1224, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-reed-cal-2006.