People v. Turner

96 Cal. App. 4th 1409, 118 Cal. Rptr. 2d 99, 2002 Daily Journal DAR 3211, 2002 Cal. Daily Op. Serv. 2657, 2002 Cal. App. LEXIS 3154
California Court of Appeal·Decided March 22, 2002·No. No. C037315·Published·Cited by 1 cases

Opinion

Opinion

SIMS, Acting P. J.

On September 18, 2000, defendant Jesse Dee Turner pled guilty to possession for sale of methamphetamine (Health & Saf. Code, § 11378) and being a felon in possession of a firearm (Pen. Code, § 12021.1, subd. (a)). Defendant also admitted as true allegations he suffered a prior serious felony conviction (Pen. Code, §§ 667, subd. (d), 1170.12, subd. (b)) and served a prior prison term (Pen. Code, § 667.5, subd. (b)).

[1412]*1412On October 16, 2000, the day set for sentencing, defendant was granted a continuance to allow him to file a motion to withdraw his guilty plea.

On November 6, 2000, the sentencing hearing was reset because defendant had not filed the motion to withdraw his guilty plea. Defendant never moved to withdraw his plea.

On December 5, 2000, defendant was sentenced to a total of five years in state prison.

On December 21, 2000, defendant filed a notice of appeal and a request for a certificate of probable cause. The request for the certificate was supported by a declaration from defendant. In his declaration, defendant averred that a parole agent, who had participated in the search of a truck in which defendant had been a passenger, lied in his report when the agent described the truck as being owned by the defendant. In fact, according to a police report prepared by a police officer, the truck had been owned by defendant’s brother. Defendant acknowledged that he received the parole agent’s report two days after he entered his guilty plea.

The trial court granted defendant a certificate of probable cause.

On appeal, defendant contends this court should set aside his guilty plea because it was not knowingly and intelligently made (and was therefore involuntary), in that defendant was not made aware of the alleged falsehood in the parole agent’s report until after he entered his plea.

Defendant has forfeited this claim on appeal because he never made a motion to withdraw his plea in the trial court.

Thus, as a general rule, “an appellate court will not consider claims of error that could have been—but were not—raised in the trial court. [Citation.]” (People v. Vera (1997) 15 Cal.4th 269, 275 [62 Cal.Rptr.2d 754, 934 P.2d 1279]; see People v. Simon (2001) 25 Cal.4th 1082, 1103 [108 Cal.Rptr.2d 385, 25 P.3d 598], and authorities cited therein; People v. Saunders (1993) 5 Cal.4th 580, 589-590 [20 Cal.Rptr.2d 638, 853 P.2d 1093].)

Here, Penal Code section 1018 expressly authorized defendant to move to withdraw his plea “at any time before judgment.”1 (See People v. Cruz (1974) 12 Cal.3d 562, 566, fn. 5 [116 Cal.Rptr. 242, 526 P.2d 250].) The [1413]*1413record demonstrates defendant was aware of the circumstances that allegedly caused his plea to be involuntary some two days after entry of the plea and well before judgment, that defendant thereafter obtained a continuance to allow him to file a motion to withdraw his plea, and that no such motion was ever made. In the circumstances, by failing to move to withdraw his plea in the trial court, defendant has forfeited the claim on appeal that his plea was entered involuntarily. (People v. Marsh (1984) 36 Cal.3d 134, 140 [202 Cal.Rptr. 92, 679 P.2d 1033]; People v. Massie (1967) 66 Cal.2d 899, 910 [59 Cal.Rptr. 733, 428 P.2d 869]; People v. Pinon (1973) 35 Cal.App.3d 120, 126 [110 Cal.Rptr. 406]; People v. Barajas (1972) 26 Cal.App.3d 932, 937 [103 Cal.Rptr. 405].)

In our original opinion in this case, we said that, “the trial court failed to impose the mandatory $50 laboratory analysis fee that accompanies defendant’s conviction for violation of Health and Safety Code section 11378. (Health & Saf. Code, § 11372.5, subd. (a).) ‘The fee is mandatory. [Citations.] There is no requirement that a defendant be found to have the ability to pay a criminal laboratory analysis fee before such a fee can be imposed. [Citations.]’ (People v. Martinez (1998) 65 Cal.App.4th 1511, 1519 [77 Cal.Rptr.2d 492].) The fee is also subject to mandatory penalty assessments. (Pen. Code, § 1464; Gov. Code, § 76000; People v. Martinez, supra, 65 Cal.App.4th at pp. 1520-1522.) Because the fee and penalty assessments are mandatory, this court is empowered to order defendant to pay them even though the People made no objection in the trial court. (People v. Smith (2001) 24 Cal.4th 849, 853 [102 Cal.Rptr.2d 731, 14 P.3d 942]; People v. Martinez, supra, 65 Cal.App.4th at p. 1522.)”2

We therefore modified the judgment to impose a $50 laboratory analysis fee, a $50 penalty assessment pursuant to Penal Code section 1464, and a [1414]*1414$35 penalty assessment pursuant to Government Code section 76000 (total $135). We then affirmed the judgment as modified.

Correctly pointing out that we had not given the parties an opportunity to brief the question of the imposition of the fee and penalty 3 defendant filed a petition for rehearing. Pursuant to the directive of Government Code section 68081,4 we granted rehearing and requested supplemental briefing on the issue from the parties.

Having considered the supplemental briefing, we shall again modify the judgment to impose the same laboratory analysis fee and related penalty assessments (total $135) as we did originally.

Defendant objects to this result on several grounds.

Defendant first contends that since he was not advised of this fee when he entered his plea, imposition of the fee and penalties would violate his plea agreement. He says that the court cannot impose the fee and penalties or, if it does, must give him the opportunity to withdraw his plea. However, a court violates a plea bargain only where it imposes a statutorily mandated punishment that is significantly greater than that bargained for. (People v. Walker (1991) 54 Cal.3d 1013, 1026 [1 Cal.Rptr.2d 902, 819 P.2d 861].) The total amount of the laboratory analysis fee plus penalties is $135. This amount is de minimis and does not violate defendant’s plea bargain. (Walker, supra, 54 Cal.3d at p. 1027 [$100 restitution fine is de minimis and not “significant”].)

Defendant next argues that imposition of the fee and penalties violates the doctrine of separation of powers because the People did not request that the fee be imposed, either in the trial court or this court. We do not agree. Failure to impose the mandatory laboratory analysis fee constituted an unauthorized sentence. (People v. Martinez, supra, 65 Cal.App.4th [1415]*1415at pp. 1519-1520.) An unauthorized sentence may be corrected by an appellate court “regardless of whether an objection or argument was raised in the trial and/or reviewing court.”

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People v. Turner, 96 Cal. App. 4th 1409, 118 Cal. Rptr. 2d 99, 2002 Daily Journal DAR 3211, 2002 Cal. Daily Op. Serv. 2657, 2002 Cal. App. LEXIS 3154 (Cal. Ct. App. 2002).

96 Cal. App. 4th 1409 (People v. Turner) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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