101 Cal.App.5th 922
Cal. Ct. App.2024Background
- Herman Patton was convicted by a jury of multiple sex offenses against his stepdaughter, including lewd acts, aggravated sexual assault, forcible oral copulation, sexual penetration, and forcible rape, as well as continuous sexual abuse of a child.
- The abuses occurred during several periods when the family lived in different counties in California while Patton acted as a “stay-at-home dad.”
- Patton was sentenced to a total of 48 years determinate and 45 years to life indeterminate in prison.
- Among the counts, he was convicted both of continuous sexual abuse (Penal Code § 288.5) and specific sexual offenses for acts involving the same victim and time period.
- On appeal, Patton challenged jury instructions and his dual convictions for continuous sexual abuse and individual sex acts from the same period.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Use of CALCRIM 1190 (jury instruction on single witness testimony) | Instructions are valid and do not lower burden of proof. | Jury instructions improperly lessened the prosecution's burden, violating due process. | Instructions did not misstate law or lower burden; no error. |
| Dual convictions for both continuous sexual abuse (§ 288.5) and specific acts from the same period | Defense forfeited argument by failing to demur. | Convictions for both violate § 288.5(c); cannot both stand. | No forfeiture; dual convictions unlawful; vacated continuous sexual abuse conviction. |
Key Cases Cited
- People v. Gammage, 2 Cal.4th 693 (Cal. 1992) (upholding the validity of instructions that a conviction can rest solely on the victim's testimony, so long as the standard of proof is properly conveyed to the jury)
- People v. Johnson, 28 Cal.4th 240 (Cal. 2002) (section 288.5(c) prohibits multiple convictions for continuous sexual abuse and the same period's discrete offenses)
- People v. McFarland, 58 Cal.2d 748 (Cal. 1962) (Section 654 protects against multiple punishment, not multiple convictions)
- People v. Harrison, 48 Cal.3d 321 (Cal. 1989) (intent to commit multiple criminal acts precludes § 654's application in repeated sexual assault cases)