People v. Greeley
H047281M
| Cal. Ct. App. | Oct 29, 2021Background
- Defendant Salisa Greeley convicted by jury of first-degree burglary; court suspended imposition of sentence and placed her on 3 years probation with fines, fees, and restitution.
- Victim observed three people outside an apartment late at night and later identified the female lookout at trial (initially unsure at prelim due to perceived ethnicity); police found Greeley under a truck ~75–100 yards away with a bag containing stolen items.
- Recorded jail phone call played to jury in which Greeley admitted fear and implicated herself; defense presented Dr. Kathy Pezdek as an eyewitness-memory expert; the court limited expert testimony by pretrial order.
- Defense raised prosecutorial-misconduct claims about (1) Officer McNair’s testimony referencing a CJIC database hit and (2) cross-examination/impeachment of Dr. Pezdek; trial court gave a curative instruction as to the CJIC remark.
- Sentencing imposed various assessments including a criminal justice administration fee and monthly probation supervision fee; on appeal issues included alleged prosecutorial misconduct, CALCRIM No. 315 (certainty factor), cumulative error, ability-to-pay challenges, effect of Assembly Bill 1869 (fee elimination) and AB 1950 (probation-term reduction).
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument (People) | Defendant's Argument (Greeley) | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prosecutorial misconduct — Officer McNair CJIC remark | Questioning concerned only how officer determined reported ethnicity; did not elicit defendant statements about prior arrests | Prosecutor elicited testimony violating in limine order about prior police contacts | No misconduct; if error, cured by court strike and limiting instruction; harmless |
| Prosecutorial misconduct — cross of Dr. Pezdek / impeachment document | Cross-examination probative of expert credibility; impeachment material was produced for inspection and later provided | Prosecutor implied juror rejection of expert elsewhere and delayed providing impeachment materials | Any improper question was cut off/objection sustained; impeachment document ultimately provided; no reversible error |
| Eyewitness ID instruction (CALCRIM No. 315 certainty factor) | Instruction is neutral and lists certainty as one of many factors jurors may consider | Certainty wording misleads jurors to overvalue confidence; violates due process | Forfeited (no objection); on the merits, not reversible under Sanchez/Lemcke; court noted potential for juror confusion but declined reversal |
| Fines/assessments & ability-to-pay hearing (Dueñas claim) | Imposition of assessments and restitution without ability-to-pay hearing is improper | Sentencing occurred after Dueñas; defendant could have sought a hearing; claim forfeited; court skeptical of Dueñas reasoning | Forfeited; even on merits court declined to follow Dueñas; however, fees eliminated by statute (AB 1869) must be vacated for unpaid balances |
| Statutory fee elimination (AB 1869) & probation fees | AG: Fees become uncollectible automatically as of July 1, 2021; no court action needed | Argues fees should be stricken from the judgment/order | AB 1869 and Gov. Code §6111 / Pen. Code §1465.9 make unpaid balances unenforceable and expressly require vacatur; court orders unpaid CJ administration and probation supervision fees vacated |
| Probation term (AB 1950) | AG: AB 1950 limits felony probation to 2 years and applies to nonfinal cases | Defendant seeks reduction to 2 years | AB 1950 is retroactive to nonfinal cases; remand to reduce probation from 3 to 2 years |
Key Cases Cited
- People v. Crew, 31 Cal.4th 822 (Cal. 2003) (prosecutorial misconduct standard for eliciting inadmissible evidence)
- People v. Dykes, 46 Cal.4th 731 (Cal. 2009) (limits on improper questioning to imply damaging facts)
- People v. Williams, 79 Cal.App.4th 1157 (Cal. Ct. App. 2000) (jurors presumed to follow limiting instructions)
- People v. Sánchez, 63 Cal.4th 411 (Cal. 2016) (CALJIC/CALCRIM eyewitness-ID instruction and certainty factor analysis)
- People v. Lemcke, 11 Cal.5th 644 (Cal. 2021) (reaffirmed Sánchez; recognized risk of certainty language and urged Judicial Council action)
- People v. Dueñas, 30 Cal.App.5th 1157 (Cal. Ct. App. 2019) (ability-to-pay and imposition of assessments; discussed and distinguished)
- People v. Aguilar, 60 Cal.4th 862 (Cal. 2015) (forfeiture of sentencing challenges not raised at sentencing)
- People v. Trujillo, 60 Cal.4th 850 (Cal. 2015) (same principle on forfeiture)
- People v. Brackins, 37 Cal.App.5th 56 (Cal. Ct. App. 2019) (de novo statutory construction principles applied)
- In re Estrada, 63 Cal.2d 740 (Cal. 1965) (retroactivity presumption for ameliorative statutes referenced)
- People v. Watkins, 55 Cal.4th 999 (Cal. 2012) (cumulative-error analysis)
- People v. Lopez-Vinck, 68 Cal.App.5th 945 (Cal. Ct. App. 2021) (construing §6111 to require vacatur of referenced costs)