People v. Sechler CA5

CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedFebruary 4, 2022
DocketF079614
StatusUnpublished

This text of People v. Sechler CA5 (People v. Sechler CA5) 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. Sechler CA5, (Cal. Ct. App. 2022).

Opinion

Filed 2/4/22 P. v. Sechler 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NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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, F079614 Plaintiff and Respondent, (Super. Ct. No. BF172572A) v.

MICHAEL EDWARD BUCK SECHLER, OPINION Defendant and Appellant.

APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of Kern County. John D. Oglesby, Judge. Matthew Aaron Lopas, 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, Louis M. Vasquez, Lewis A. Martinez and William K. Kim, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent. -ooOoo- Defendant Michael Edward Buck Sechler was convicted by jury trial of felony evading a peace officer, misdemeanor resisting arrest, and misdemeanor driving without a license. On appeal, he contends (1) the trial court erred by incorrectly instructing the jury on the felony charge of evading a peace officer, (2) insufficient evidence supports the conviction of evading a peace officer, and (3) the court must strike a prior prison term enhancement due to the passage of Senate Bill No. 136. We strike the prior prison term enhancement and affirm the judgment as modified. PROCEDURAL SUMMARY On October 18, 2018, the Kern County District Attorney charged defendant of felony evading a peace officer (Veh. Code, §§ 2800.1, 2800.2;1 count 1); misdemeanor resisting, delaying, or obstructing a peace officer (Pen. Code, § 148, subd. (a)(1); count 2); and misdemeanor driving without a driver’s license (§ 12500, subd. (a); count 3). The information further alleged defendant had suffered two prior “strike” convictions within the meaning of the “Three Strikes” law (Pen. Code, §§ 667, subds. (b)–(i), 1170.12, subds. (a)–(d)), and had served three prior prison terms (Pen. Code, § 667.5, subd. (b)). Defendant pled not guilty to all counts. On June 10, 2019, a jury found defendant guilty on all counts. In a bifurcated proceeding, the trial court found two of the prior strike allegations true, one of the prior prison term allegations true, and the remaining special allegations not true. On July 11, 2019, the trial court sentenced defendant to six years on the felony conviction of evading a peace officer and an additional one year for the prior prison term enhancement. On the misdemeanor conviction of resisting arrest, the court sentenced defendant to 120 days to be served concurrently with count 1. On the misdemeanor conviction of driving without a license, the court sentenced defendant to 120 days to be served concurrently with count 2. Defendant timely filed a notice of appeal.

1 All statutory references are to the Vehicle Code unless otherwise noted.

2. FACTS On June 8, 2018, California Highway Patrol (CHP) Officer Austin Simmons was on patrol near Vista Grande Drive, south of State Route (SR) 178, in Kern County. He was wearing a CHP uniform and driving a marked patrol car. The patrol car was black and white with a CHP star emblem on both front doors and the words “California Highway Patrol” written on the back of the vehicle. The patrol car was equipped with a light bar on the roof and a siren. At approximately 6:20 p.m. that evening, Officer Simmons was driving southbound on Vista Grande Drive and observed a blue sedan traveling that same road in the opposite direction. As the two cars passed at approximately 15 to 20 miles per hour, the driver of the blue sedan looked directly at Officer Simmons. Officer Simmons got a good look at the driver and noticed he was not wearing his seatbelt. Officer Simmons turned his patrol car around to follow the blue sedan. He briefly lost sight of the blue sedan, which had turned at a nearby stop sign. As Officer Simmons approached the stop sign, he looked to his right and saw the blue sedan traveling eastbound on SR 178 at an “accelerated high rate of speed,” which he visually estimated at 80 to 90 miles per hour. Officer Simmons initiated his “red forward emergency lights” and attempted to overtake the blue sedan. The blue sedan got behind a slower moving vehicle, followed it at a close distance, and attempted to pass it on the right dirt shoulder. Officer Simmons positioned his patrol car directly behind the blue sedan. Once the slower vehicle moved out of the way, the blue sedan “made an abrupt right turn on to southbound Paul’s Place [Drive] … at a high rate of speed … caus[ing] the rear wheel of the sedan to lose traction and slide into the opposite lane of traffic .…” The blue sedan continued at an estimated speed of 60 miles per hour and was approaching Paul’s Place General Store where approximately four to five vehicles and 10

3. pedestrians were located. Officer Simmons estimated the pedestrians were 75 to 100 feet from the road. The blue sedan then “turned to the left driving on the opposite side of the roadway.” The driver of the blue sedan parked the vehicle on top of sagebrush and began to flee on foot into a desert field. Officer Simmons exited his patrol car and began to pursue the driver on foot. He lost sight of the driver and, turning around, noticed the blue sedan was on fire. He returned to the sedan to try to put the fire out but, by that time, it was fully engulfed in flames. Officer Simmons called for emergency fire personnel to respond and then resumed his search for the driver. He eventually found the driver lying in a group of sagebrush bushes and placed him under arrest. At trial, Officer Simmons identified defendant as the driver of the blue sedan. He testified that several driving maneuvers defendant made were violations of the Vehicle Code, including following other vehicles at an unsafe distance, traveling faster than the posted speed limit, attempting to pass another vehicle on the dirt shoulder, traveling at an unsafe speed when pedestrians are near the road, driving into oncoming traffic, making an unsafe turn, and evading a peace officer. Officer Simmons never activated his siren during the pursuit. When asked why, he explained, “By the time I positioned my patrol vehicle directly behind the blue sedan it quickly made that right turn [onto Paul’s Place Drive] and the pursuit was over.” He estimated the vehicle pursuit lasted “a minute, maybe a little over a minute.” He initiated the pursuit at approximately 6:20 p.m. and arrested defendant at 6:33 p.m. DISCUSSION I. SECTIONS 2800.1 AND 2800.2 A. Jury Instructions The offense of evading a peace officer under sections 2800.1 and 2800.2 (count 1) requires proof, among other things, the pursuing peace officer’s motor vehicle was

4. “sounding a siren as may be reasonably necessary.” Defendant contends the trial court erred in instructing the jury, as to count 1, that “As reasonably necessary means as reasonably necessary to inform a person that a peace officer’s vehicle is in pursuit.” We determine the court properly instructed the jury on this element of the offense. Whether a jury instruction is proper is a question of law. (Harb v. City of Bakersfield (2015) 233 Cal.App.4th 606, 617.) We apply a de novo standard of review in evaluating whether a jury instruction contains a correct statement of the law. (Ibid.; People v. Lopez (2011) 198 Cal.App.4th 698, 708.) “In construing a statute, this court is to ascertain the intent of the Legislature in order to effectuate the law’s purpose.” (People v.

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People v. Sechler CA5, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-sechler-ca5-calctapp-2022.