In re Hoze (Cal. Ct. App., Feb. 25, 2021, No. A158399) 2021 WL 732072, at *1 Summary: Johnnie Hoze was 67 years old and had served nearly four decades in state prison on an indeterminate life sentence when the Board of Parole Hearings (“Board”) found him suitable for parole under…
San Francisco Criminal Lawyer Blog
DMV may use blood test results to suspend licenses even if there is a violation of blood test regulations
WILLIAM LEE GERWIG, JR., Plaintiff and Appellant, v. STEVE GORDON, as Director, etc., Defendant and Respondent. (Cal. Ct. App., Feb. 19, 2021, No. D076921) 2021 WL 650274 Summary: When the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) holds an administrative hearing to consider whether to suspend a driver’s license, it can usually…
1437 proceedings: At prima facie stage trial court should not determine facts to dismiss the petition
People v. Duchine (Cal. Ct. App., Feb. 9, 2021, No. A157980) 2021 WL 447105, at *1 Summary: John Allen Duchine was convicted of first degree murder in 1987. In 2019, he filed a petition for resentencing under Penal Code section 1170.95,1 [Senate Bill 1437 (S.B. 1437)] with a declaration asserting…
Decision of Court of Appeal is part of the Record of Conviction in a 1170.95 Hearing
People v. Clements (Cal. Ct. App., Feb. 4, 2021, No. E073965) 2021 WL 388834, at *1 Summary: In 1989, Jody Ann Clements solicited her ex-husband and her boyfriend to assault her 16-year-old brother who then two killed the brother by stabbing him and bludgeoning him with a rock. A jury…
Trail Court Must Evaluate Prosecution’s Reasons for Exclusion of Black Jurors
People v. Collins (Cal. Ct. App., Feb. 2, 2021, No. F076883) 2021 WL 343935 Summary: Collins was convicted of two counts of murder as a result of driving while impaired On appeal, he claims that the trial court erred in denying his motion to challenge the prosecutor’s excusal of a…
Lifers entitled to habeas relief for excessive incarceration must serve parole period
In re Palmer (Cal., Jan. 28, 2021, No. S256149) 2021 WL 279621, at *1 Summary: The California and federal Constitutions bar the infliction of punishment that is grossly disproportionate to the offender’s individual culpability. (U.S. Const., 8th Amend.; Cal. Const., art. I, § 17.) The courts, “as coequal guardian[s]…
Malice not required for felony murder of a peace officer
The People, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. Alberto Beto Hernandez, Defendant and Appellant. (Cal. Ct. App., Jan. 22, 2021, No. B302815) 2021 WL 221976, at *1–2 Summary: On January 1, 2019 the the law governing whether a defendant can be convicted of murder under a felony murder or natural and probable…
A limited waiver of the 60-day deadline for a preliminary hearing must be enforced
Favor v. Superior Court of San Bernardino County (Cal. Ct. App., Jan. 13, 2021, No. E075340) 2021 WL 118005 Summary: The right to a preliminary hearing within 60 days of arraignment “is absolute absent a defendant’s personal waiver.” (Ramos v. Superior Court (2007) 146 Cal.App.4th 719, 729, 53 Cal.Rptr.3d 189.)…
2021-22 Governor’s Budget Summary for The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR)
CDCR incarcerates people convicted of violent felonies, supervises those released to parole, and provides rehabilitation programs to help them reintegrate into the community with the tools to be drug-free, healthy, and employable members of society. The Budget proposes total funding of $13.1 billion ($12.7 billion General Fund and $345 million…
California Supreme Court: CDCR must make nonviolent offender parole consideration available to inmates convicted of registerable sex offenses
In re Gadlin Supreme Court of California. December 28, 2020 — P.3d —- 2020 WL 7690154 Proposition 57- nonviolent felony parole consideration In 2009, a three-judge federal district court panel ordered the CDCR “to reduce the prisoner population to 137.5% of the adult institution’s total design capacity.” (Coleman v. Schwarzenegger…