People v. Washington

50 Cal. App. 4th 568, 57 Cal. Rptr. 2d 774
CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedOctober 29, 1996
DocketDocket Nos. H013910, H014963
StatusPublished
Cited by40 cases

This text of 50 Cal. App. 4th 568 (People v. Washington) 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. Washington, 50 Cal. App. 4th 568, 57 Cal. Rptr. 2d 774 (Cal. Ct. App. 1996).

Opinions

Opinion

WUNDERLICH, J.

I. Statement of the Case

Defendant Kenneth Anthony Washington appeals from a judgment entered after a jury found him guilty of two counts of first degree burglary. The jury also found true allegations that defendant had nine prior convictions that qualified as “strikes” under Penal Code section 667, subdivisions (b) through (i), popularly known as the “three strikes” law.1

On appeal, defendant claims the comí gave erroneous instructions on aiding and abetting. He also claims the court erred in (1) permitting the jury to convict him of two burglaries, (2) imposing separate punishment for both burglary convictions, (3) failing to exercise discretion to impose concurrent sentences on the burglaries, (4) imposing five-year enhancements consecutive to the two burglary terms, and (5) refusing to exercise discretion to consider whether to dismiss his prior convictions in the interest of justice. Defendant further claims his prior convictions do not qualify as strikes under the three strikes law and that the law itself was not properly enacted as an urgency measure. Finally, defendant claims his attorney rendered ineffective assistance, in that he elicited defendant’s drug use, did not move for acquittal on one burglary count, failed to subpoena a witness, and failed to object to a note written by a witness, evidence of his poverty, and evidence of an arrest for a domestic disturbance.

We reverse one burglary conviction, vacate the judgment, and remand the matter for further proceedings.

Defendant also filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus, which we have considered with his appeal. In it he asserts a claim of ineffective assistance identical to that raised in his appeal. We deny the petition.

II. Facts

At 7.T5 a.m. on April 15, 1994, Mildred Bradke was walking her dog in the park next to an apartment complex on Weddell Drive in Sunnyvale. She [571]*571saw two people removing the window screen from apartment 26. One of them, a slender, light-skinned Black person, wearing a red bandanna, entered through the window. Bradke shouted to the man who remained outside. The man identified himself as “Newsome" and said he lived in the apartment and his wife had to go through the window because they had locked themselves out. Thereafter, the man entered through the door.

Bradke knew that Linda Auble lived in apartment 26 and a Black woman named Newsome lived in apartment 24. She confirmed this by checking the building’s directory. She then left a note in the manager’s mailbox, reporting what she had seen and describing the man as a “heavy Black man” and the other person as a “slim person in green slacks.”2

The apartment manager Luis Villasenor found the note and at 8:30 a.m. checked apartment 26. The screen was in place, and nothing seemed wrong. He attempted without success to call Auble. Later, at 9:30 a.m., Villasenor was making service calls and writing in a book, when defendant approached from a nearby car, tried to see what Villasenor was writing, and said he was interested in renting an apartment. A second Black person was in the car.

Villasenor showed defendant apartment 29, which was vacant, and then started back to his office. Remembering Bradke’s note, Villasenor instead went to apartment 26. Defendant was standing outside the window while someone else entered. The screen was off. Defendant said “manager” and “stay still.” Villasenor asked who had gone through the window, but defendant denied knowing anything about it and said he was visiting someone in apartment 24. Villasenor went to the assistant manager’s apartment and asked her to call 911. He heard defendant knock on apartment 26 and say, “Let’s get out of here, they are calling the cops.” A tall thin woman with a red bandanna ran out, and she and defendant ran to a nearby car. Villasenor followed. Defendant removed the rear license plate, and then he, the woman, and a third person sped away.

Villasenor entered Auble’s apartment and called the police. Officer Robert Mongrain of the San Jose Police Department arrived. He found no usable fingerprints inside the apartment. Villasenor took Mongrain to his office to get Auble’s phone number. There, a man called, asked if the police were there, and wanted Auble’s phone number. Villasenor recognized defendant’s voice and gave the phone to Mongrain. The caller said he and Auble were [572]*572friends and could “straighten this all out.” When Mongrain asked the caller to come there, the caller declined, saying he had two felonies and this would be a third strike. The man called back later and got Auble’s phone number.

Villasenor and Mongrain went to apartment 24 because Villasenor said defendant was the occupant’s, Helena Newsome’s, boyfriend. The door was unlocked. The screen was on the window. From there, they went to Auble’s apartment. The previous caller phoned there but said he would call back later.

When Auble arrived, she said a cordless phone, a clock radio, and $8 in change were missing. When she left that morning the screen was on the window. Villasenor described to her the man he had seen. Auble said it was defendant, Newsome’s boyfriend. Auble had seen him for a few months but had never given him permission to enter her apartment. While Mongrain was still at the apartment, the man who had called earlier called and said something to the effect that he would not do that to her. Auble became upset and hung up. He called again and identified himself to Mongrain as defendant. He denied taking part in the incident and blamed two other “guys” he met in East Palo Alto but did not know. He said he would find out and tell his parole officer.

At trial, Helena Newsome testified that she met defendant in October 1993 and had written to him while he was in Folsom prison. After his release, they became romantically involved and were presently engaged. On April 15, 1994, he was in the process of moving into her apartment. However, she had not seen him for a week because they had had an argument. She testified that defendant had been with a woman named Vicky, who was skinny and wore a bandanna. Newsome said defendant was unemployed but she gave him “living money” and “gas money” and let him use her car. She said he did not have a key to her apartment on April 15 but had permission to enter through the window if necessary.

Two weeks after the burglary, police responded to a neighbor’s report of a domestic disturbance at Vicky Bell’s home and arrested defendant. Police learned there was a parole hold on defendant stemming from the burglary. According to Officer Mark Sole, defendant said he paid a man named Jack to drive him and Vicky Bell from East Palo Alto to Newsome’s apartment so he could take a shower. While Jack stayed in the car, he and Bell broke into Newsome’s apartment, with permission. Defendant said that when he finished showering, Bell was gone. He heard a commotion at apartment 26. He went outside and because he was on parole told Bell to get out of that apartment. She did, and they walked to the car where Jack was waiting. He [573]*573bent the rear license plate so it could not be read. Bell had a telephone and a clock radio.

The Defense

Defendant testified and repeated what he told Officer Sole but added more detail. He said he had to shower at Newsome’s because he had a job interview at Great America.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
50 Cal. App. 4th 568, 57 Cal. Rptr. 2d 774, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-washington-calctapp-1996.