People v. Smith CA5

California Court of Appeal·Decided September 17, 2024·No. F086360·Unpublished

Opinion

Filed 9/17/24 P. v. Smith 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NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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, F086360 Plaintiff and Respondent, (Super. Ct. No. F16901823) v.

CHARLES MICHAEL SHALAU SMITH, OPINION Defendant and Appellant.

THE COURT* APPEAL from an order of the Superior Court of Fresno County. Houry A. Sanderson, Judge.

Matthew J. Watts, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant. Rob Bonta, Attorney General, Lance E. Winters, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Michael P. Farrell, Assistant Attorney General, Christopher J. Rench and Kelly E. LeBel, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent. -ooOoo-

*Before Peña, Acting P. J., Meehan, J. and Snauffer, J. INTRODUCTION In 2017, defendant Charlie Michael Smith1 pleaded no contest to attempted murder (Pen. Code, §§ 187, 664; count 1) and possession of a weapon while incarcerated (§ 4502; count 2). (Undesignated statutory references are to the Penal Code.) He also admitted a prior serious felony enhancement allegation (§ 667, subd. (a)), a strike prior allegation (§ 667, subds. (b)–(i), 1170.12, subds. (a)–(d)), and two prison prior allegations (§ 667.5, former subd. (b)). Pursuant to the stipulated plea agreement, defendant was sentenced to a term of 26 years, which consisted of an upper term of 18 years on count 1 (the upper term doubled based upon the strike prior), two years (one- third the midterm) for count 2, plus five years for the prior serious felony enhancement (§ 667, subd. (a)), and one year for one of the section 667.5, former subdivision (b) prison prior enhancements. In 2022, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation identified defendant as an individual potentially eligible for resentencing pursuant to Senate Bill No. 483 (2021–2022 Reg. Sess.) (Senate Bill 483). The trial court indicated it did not believe defendant was entitled to a full resentencing in light of the plea agreement, but it struck the prison prior enhancement and resentenced defendant to a term of 25 years. On appeal, defendant asserts the court erred in failing to conduct a full resentencing; accordingly, the matter must be remanded and any further reduction of his sentence on resentencing shall not be a basis for the People or the court to withdraw from the plea agreement. The People agree that defendant is entitled to a full resentencing, but they contend if, upon remand, the court alters the parties’ plea agreement by further reducing defendant’s sentence beyond striking the prior prison term enhancement, they

1The court corrected the record in May 2023 to show defendant’s true name to be Charles Michael Shalau Smith.

2. have the option to withdraw from the plea agreement pursuant to People v. Stamps (2020) 9 Cal.5th 685. We vacate the court’s order and remand for further proceedings consistent with this opinion. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY Charges, Verdict, and Original Sentence In March 2016, defendant was charged with committing attempted premeditated murder of Andrew Bratton (§§ 187, 664; count 1) and possession of a weapon while incarcerated (§ 4502; count 2). It was also alleged defendant suffered a prior serious felony conviction within the meaning of section 667, subdivision (a) that also qualified as a strike prior based on a 2007 burglary conviction (§§ 211, 212.5, subd. (a)), a prior violent felony conviction (§ 667.5, subd. (a)), and that he served two prior prison terms that qualified as prior prison term enhancements under section 667.5, former subdivision (b). On March 9, 2017, in accordance with a stipulated plea agreement, defendant pleaded no contest to attempted murder (§§ 187, 664; count 1) and possession of a weapon while incarcerated (§ 4502; count 2), admitted the prior serious felony and strike prior enhancements (§§ 667, subd. (a), 667, subds. (b)–(i), 1170.12, subds. (a)–(d)), and admitted both prison prior allegations (§ 667.5, former subd. (b)).2 He was sentenced to a term of 26 years. The sentence was composed of an upper term of 18 years on count 1 (the upper term doubled based upon the strike prior), two years (one-third the midterm) for count 2, plus five years for the prior serious felony enhancement (§ 667, subd. (a)),

2Pursuant to the plea agreement, the People struck the allegation the attempted murder was willful, deliberate, and premeditated and the prior violent felony allegation (§ 667.5, subd. (a)).

3. and one year for one of the section 667.5, former subdivision (b) prison prior enhancements.3 Resentencing Proceedings After the passage of Senate Bill 483, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) identified defendant as an individual potentially eligible for resentencing. In August 2022, the court held a hearing at which it appointed defendant counsel. Before the next hearing, defendant filed a brief arguing the court should find individuals, including defendant, who were sentenced pursuant to a stipulated plea agreement are eligible for full resentencing under section 1172.75. The People also filed a brief in which they asserted defendant is entitled to have his prison prior enhancement stricken because it is now invalid, but the court was without discretion to conduct a full resentencing hearing. On May 24, 2023, the court held a hearing during which the People again agreed defendant was eligible to have his prison prior enhancement stricken, but they asserted defendant was not entitled to any other relief because the matter was a stipulated plea and sentence. Defense counsel argued, once the court recalled the sentence and struck the prison prior enhancement, defendant should be entitled to a full resentencing despite the fact he was originally sentenced pursuant to a stipulated plea agreement. The court denied that a full resentencing was appropriate in light of the stipulated plea agreement. It explained it did not believe “that a stipulated plea should be reversed in the sense that taken apart, picked because that was something that the parties agreed on, except to remove that which is no longer a valid prior. To the extent that [defendant] has one prison prior that is invalid by current law, other than that, this Court does not believe that any further modifications is [sic] appropriate. The Court does not believe a

3The prior conviction forming the basis for the second prison prior enhancement pursuant to section 667.5, former subdivision (b) was reduced to a misdemeanor pursuant to Proposition 47 and the related enhancement was dismissed.

4. stipulated plea agreement should be set aside merely because the defense now wants to get resentencing. It is not as clear as the defense believes the legislation says. I understand the desire is to reduce the sentence by removing the prison prior and a full resentencing when appropriate. This is not one of those cases, so the Court is not inclined to do that.” The court struck the section 667.5, former subdivision (b) prison prior enhancement and otherwise reinstated the terms of the original sentence for a total term of 25 years. DISCUSSION Defendant appeals from the court’s order, asserting the court erred in failing to conduct a full resentencing. The People agree, but they contend if the court reduces defendant’s sentence further, the People should have the option to withdraw from the plea agreement. I. Standard of Review “‘“When we interpret a statute, ‘[o]ur fundamental task … is to determine the Legislature’s intent so as to effectuate the law’s purpose.

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

People v. Smith CA5, (Cal. Ct. App. 2024).

People v. Smith CA5 (People v. Smith CA5) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related

Doe v. Harris
302 P.3d 598 (California Supreme Court, 2013)
People v. Slayton
32 P.3d 1073 (California Supreme Court, 2001)
People v. Chadd
621 P.2d 837 (California Supreme Court, 1981)
People v. Gutierrez
324 P.3d 245 (California Supreme Court, 2014)
Harris v. Superior Court of Los Angeles County
383 P.3d 648 (California Supreme Court, 2016)
People v. Stamps
467 P.3d 168 (California Supreme Court, 2020)