40 Cal.App.5th 42
Cal. Ct. App.2019Background
- Early‑morning burglary/robbery at the Ramírezs’ garage: Francisco Rodriguez was inside the car removing speakers, pointed a shotgun and fired (weapon misfired); Jesus Mejia stood outside with a pistol, grabbed Alberta Ramírez’s phone, and ordered Jose back into the garage; both fled in a black car.
- Rodriguez and Mejia were tried together; prosecution employed aiding‑and‑abetting and natural‑and‑probable‑consequences (NPC) theories.
- Jury convicted Mejia of multiple counts including attempted premeditated murder (counts 4 & 9), robbery, burglary, street terrorism, and firearm possession; true findings on gang and weapon allegations; prior serious and strike priors found true.
- Trial court imposed a lengthy aggregate sentence (indeterminate life terms plus determinate years) including multiple 10‑year firearm and gang enhancements and a 5‑year prior serious‑felony enhancement.
- On appeal Mejia challenged the jury instruction allowing a finding of attempted premeditated murder under the NPC doctrine and raised multiple sentencing/clerical errors. The Attorney General conceded some sentencing errors; court addressed application of recent Senate Bill No. 1393.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether an aider/abettor may be convicted of attempted premeditated murder under the natural and probable consequences doctrine | Favor controls: NPC can support attempted premeditated murder for aider/abettor | Chiu reasoning should extend to attempted murder — perpetrator’s premeditation is too subjective/attenuated to impose on aider/abettor | Court follows Chiu rationale and holds NPC cannot support a premeditation/deliberation finding for an aider/abettor; special finding vacated and matter remanded to allow prosecution to retry the special finding as a direct perpetrator |
| Gun‑use enhancement amount on count 7 (§12022.53) | AG concedes trial court erred in imposing full 10 years | Mejia seeks correct enhancement term | Modify enhancement on count 7 to 3 years 4 months under §1170.1 |
| Three Strikes doubling and arithmetic for counts 3 & 7 | AG notes discrepancy between oral pronouncement and abstract/minutes; abstract didn’t reflect doubling | Mejia seeks correct calculation | Remand for resentencing; correct doubled total for counts 3 & 7 is 7 years 4 months (not 7 years 6 months) |
| Application of SB 1393 (trial court discretion to strike prior serious‑felony §667(a)(1) enhancement) | AG concedes SB 1393 applies retroactively if judgment not final before effective date | Mejia requests relief under SB 1393 | Reverse imposition of the 5‑year enhancement and remand to permit trial court to decide whether to strike it |
| Clerical and abstract/minute‑order errors (stays under §654, duplicate enhancements, order of sentences, total determinate term) | AG pointed out multiple clerical discrepancies | Mejia seeks correction to reflect oral judgment | Court orders corrections: reflect §654 stays, delete duplicate §667(a)(1) entry on indeterminate abstract, indicate determinate term served first, and update determinate total after resentencing |
Key Cases Cited
- People v. Chiu, 59 Cal.4th 155 (limits use of natural and probable consequences doctrine for first‑degree premeditated murder; court applies its reasoning to attempted murder)
- People v. Favor, 54 Cal.4th 868 (holds aider/abettor may be convicted of attempted premeditated murder under NPC doctrine)
- People v. Luparello, 187 Cal.App.3d 410 (explains policy basis for NPC doctrine: hold aiders/abettors responsible for harms they foreseeably put in motion)
- Alleyne v. United States, 570 U.S. 99 (noted by defendant but not necessary to decision; addresses fact‑finding that increases mandatory minimums)