People v. Villegas

205 Cal. App. 4th 642, 140 Cal. Rptr. 3d 687, 2012 WL 1435019, 2012 Cal. App. LEXIS 494
CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedApril 26, 2012
DocketNo. B231177
StatusPublished
Cited by26 cases

This text of 205 Cal. App. 4th 642 (People v. Villegas) 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. Villegas, 205 Cal. App. 4th 642, 140 Cal. Rptr. 3d 687, 2012 WL 1435019, 2012 Cal. App. LEXIS 494 (Cal. Ct. App. 2012).

Opinion

Opinion

KRIEGLER, J.

Defendant and appellant Hector Villegas, a sex offender subject to registration, was convicted by jury in count 21 of failure to file a change of address. (Pen. Code, § 290.013, subd. (a).)2 In count 3, defendant was convicted of failing to notify the responsible agency of his new address. (§ 290.013, subd. (b).) The trial court sentenced defendant to state prison in count 2 for the upper term of three years, enhanced by one year for a prior prison term (§ 667.5, subd. (b)). The same sentence was imposed as to count 3 but stayed under section 654.

Defendant contends that one of his convictions must be reversed because subdivisions (a) and (b) of section 290.013 “describe alternate and mutually exclusive theories for the same offense,” with subdivision (a) requiring the jury to find defendant knew where he was moving but subdivision (b) requiring the jury to find defendant did not know his new address at the time [645]*645of the move. Defendant also argues the abstract of judgment must be amended to conform to the oral pronouncement of judgment, a point properly conceded by the Attorney General. We order modification to the abstract of judgment and otherwise affirm.

FACTS

Defendant, a sex offender residing in the San Femando Valley, was required to register his place of residence at the Van Nuys Division of the Los Angeles Police Department.3 Defendant acknowledged his understanding of the current registration requirements each time he registered between 1999 and 2007. On April 5, 2007, defendant registered his address as at a motel in Sylmar.

Defendant was on parole at the time of his last registration for an unrelated offense. His parole officer advised defendant of his registration requirements, and that he was required to notify her if he moved.

On December 30, 2007, the global positioning system attached to defendant’s leg stopped indicating movement. The parole officer checked defendant’s motel room that day but received no answer to her knocks on the door. The parole officer returned on December 31. The manager of the motel allowed the parole officer into defendant’s room. Defendant’s belongings were gone, the global positioning device had been cut from his leg, and he left a note indicating he felt he did not need to report to the parole officer.

Defendant did not notify the Los Angeles Police Department that he had moved or that he had a new residence. Defendant was arrested in Alabama in 2008. He was extradited to California in 2010 for trial.

DISCUSSION

Multiple Violations of Section 290.013

Defendant argues he cannot be convicted under both subdivisions (a) and (b) of section 290.013 because the two provisions contain mutually exclusive states of mind regarding the registrant’s knowledge of a new address. According to defendant, subdivision (a) required him to give notice of a new address only if he knew the new address at the time he moved. Subdivision (b) is violated when the registrant does not know the new address at the time of the move and the registrant fails to give written notice of a new address [646]*646within five days of reaching the new location. Because, in defendant’s view, subdivision (a) requires knowledge of a new address and subdivision (b) excludes knowledge of a new address, the two subdivisions are mutually exclusive means of punishing the failure to provide notice of a move from one location to another. As defendant sees it, the jury’s verdicts meant it found under subdivision (a) that defendant knew his destination and under subdivision (b) that he did not know where he was moving, findings that cannot be logically reconciled. Defendant argues one of the convictions must be reversed.

Standard of Review

To the extent defendant’s argument requires interpretation of section 290.013, we employ the de novo standard of review. (See People v. Jones (2001) 25 Cal.4th 98, 107-108 [104 Cal.Rptr.2d 753, 18 P.3d 674]; People v. Frausto (2009) 180 Cal.App.4th 890, 897 [103 Cal.Rptr.3d 231].) The issue of whether multiple convictions are proper is also reviewed de novo, as it turns on the interpretation of section 954. “As we explained in [People v.] Reed [(2006)] 38 Cal.4th 1224 [45 Cal.Rptr.3d 353, 137 P.3d 184], ‘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[s]. Section 654 is its counterpart concerning punishment. It prohibits multiple punishment for the same “act or omission.” When section 954 permits multiple conviction[s], 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; People v. Pearson [(1986)] 42 Cal.3d [351,] 359-360 [228 Cal.Rptr. 509, 721 P.2d 595].)’ {Reed, supra, 38 Cal.4th at pp. 1226-1227.)” {People v. Sloan (2007) 42 Cal.4th 110, 116 [64 Cal.Rptr.3d 137, 164 P.3d 568].)

Analysis

Based upon the plain meaning of section 290.013 and guided by the principles of section 954 and express language in People v. Britt (2004) 32 Cal.4th 944 [12 Cal.Rptr.3d 66, 87 P.3d 812], we conclude that multiple convictions under subdivisions (a) and (b) of section 290.013 were proper. Multiple punishment was prohibited, but the trial court dealt with that issue by staying the sentence on count 3 under section 654.

[647]*647Section 290.013, subdivision (a) provides: “Any person who was last registered at a residence address pursuant to the Act who changes his or her residence address, whether within the jurisdiction in which he or she is currently registered or to a new jurisdiction inside or outside the state, shall, in person, within five working days of the move, inform the law enforcement agency or agencies with which he or she last registered of the move, the new address or transient location, if known, and any plans he or she has to return to California.”

Under this provision, whenever a person required to register changes addresses, he or she must notify the last registering agency of the move within five working days. The requirement to give notice of the move applies regardless of whether the registrant knows his or her new address. (People v. Annin (2004) 117 Cal.App.4th 591, 602-603 [15 Cal.Rptr.3d 278] {Annin) [interpreting former § 290, subd.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
205 Cal. App. 4th 642, 140 Cal. Rptr. 3d 687, 2012 WL 1435019, 2012 Cal. App. LEXIS 494, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-villegas-calctapp-2012.