People v. Gonzalez
People v. Gonzalez
Opinion of the Court
*1062Defendant and respondent, Joanna Ruth Gonzalez, pled guilty to one felony count of grand theft from a person (Pen.Code, § 487, subd. (c), count 3)
The voters of California subsequently passed Proposition 47, which converted certain nonviolent offenses into misdemeanors and created a petitioning process which allows anyone serving a felony sentence for a conviction the initiative converted into a misdemeanor to request resentencing. (§ 1170.18, subd. (a).) Relevant to Gonzalez's case, Proposition 47 converted grand theft from a person into a misdemeanor where the amount of the theft was less than $950. (§ 490.2, subd. (a).) Gonzalez petitioned for resentencing, and the trial court granted the petition, deemed her conviction on count 3 a misdemeanor, vacated her sentence of formal probation, and resentenced her to summary probation.
The People appeal and contend the trial court erred in granting the petition on the grounds that: (1) Gonzalez is not eligible *535for resentencing because she was convicted under a negotiated plea agreement under the terms of which the People dismissed other felony counts in return for Gonzalez receiving a sentence of formal probation; and (2) Gonzalez did not carry her burden of showing her offense would now be a misdemeanor because she did not show the underlying conduct would not have constituted felony robbery and burglary, as originally charged. In the alternative, the People contend the trial court erred by refusing to find Gonzalez breached the plea agreement by petitioning for resentencing and by refusing to allow them to withdraw from the plea agreement and restore the dismissed counts.
We affirm.
I
FACTUAL BACKGROUND
On July 15, 2011, Gonzalez was charged with two felonies, robbery (§ 211) and burglary (§ 459). Gonzalez and prosecutors subsequently negotiated a plea agreement. On August 16, 2011, in accord with the plea *1063agreement, prosecutors amended the complaint against Gonzalez to add a felony charge of grand theft from a person (§ 487, subd. (c) ) and a misdemeanor charge of battery (§ 242), and also moved to dismiss the robbery and burglary counts. Gonzalez pled guilty to the new felony grand theft from a person and misdemeanor battery counts. Consistent with the plea agreement, the trial court sentenced Gonzalez to 36 months of formal probation on the condition she serve 314 days in a work release program, after accounting for presentence custody and behavior credits.
After Gonzalez began serving her sentence, Proposition 47 amended the Penal Code to reduce some cases of felony grand theft to misdemeanors: "Notwithstanding Section 487 or any other provision of law defining grand theft, obtaining any property by theft where the value of the money, labor, real or personal property taken does not exceed nine hundred fifty dollars ($950) shall be considered petty theft and shall be punished as a misdemeanor." (§ 490.2, subd. (a).) Proposition 47 also added a resentencing procedure allowing offenders to petition for resentencing if they are "currently serving a sentence for a conviction, whether by trial or plea," for committing a felony and "would have been guilty of a misdemeanor under" the provisions added by Proposition 47. (§ 1170.18, subd. (a).) On December 10, 2014, Gonzalez filed a petition for resentencing under section 1170.18, subdivision (a). Her petition identifies her conviction as being for a violation of section 487 and avers that she "believes the value of the check or property does not exceed $950."
On March 5, 2015, the trial court held a hearing on the petition. The prosecution conceded Gonzalez did not pose an unreasonable risk of danger to the public safety, as that phrase is defined in the statute. The prosecution also conceded the property Gonzalez took was "well below the $950 threshold." However, the prosecution contended Gonzalez was not eligible for resentencing under section 1170.18, subdivision (a) because she was convicted pursuant to a negotiated plea agreement under which the People dismissed other felony counts. The prosecution also contended that, if Gonzalez did qualify for resentencing, the court should vacate the plea agreement and allow the prosecution to pursue the original robbery and burglary counts.
The trial court granted the petition, deemed the grand theft count to be a misdemeanor, vacated the felony formal probation sentence, and resentenced Gonzalez to summary probation.
DISCUSSION
On November 4, 2014, the voters of California enacted "The Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act" (hereinafter Proposition 47), which became effective the next day. (Cal. Const., art. II, § 10, subd. (a).) Proposition 47 changed portions of the Penal Code and Health and Safety Code to reduce various drug possession and theft-related offenses from felonies or wobblers to misdemeanors, unless the offenses were committed by certain ineligible offenders. (People v. Rivera (2015)
The interpretation of a statute is subject to de novo review on appeal. (Kavanaugh v. West Sonoma County Union High School Dist. (2003)
*1065A. Gonzalez Was Entitled to Resentencing Under Section 1170.18, Subdivisions (a) and (b).
The People contend the plea bargain is a contract which binds Gonzalez, the prosecution, and the court. As a result, they argue, Gonzalez is not "eligible for resentencing under section 1170.18, subdivision (a), because she expressly agreed to plead[ ] guilty to a felony charge of grand theft and to serve 36 months of formal, felony probation." The People also contend the same principles establish the trial court did not have the authority to resentence Gonzalez.
We begin our analysis with the statutory language. Proposition 47 specifically reduced *537certain cases of felony grand theft to petty theft. Section 487, subdivision (c) proscribes taking property in any amount from the body of another person. (§ 487, subd. (c).) Proposition 47 added a new provision, section 490.2, which reclassifies felony section 487, subdivision (c) grand theft violations into misdemeanors "where the value of the money, labor, real or personal property taken does not exceed nine hundred fifty dollars ($950)." (Italics added.)
Proposition 47 also created a petitioning procedure designed to enable convicted offenders currently serving sentences to have past felony convictions reclassified as misdemeanors and to be resentenced accordingly. New section 1170.18, subdivision (a) provides: "A person currently serving a sentence for a conviction, whether by trial or plea, of a felony or felonies who would have been guilty of a misdemeanor under the act that added this section ('this act') had this act been in effect at the time of the offense may petition for a recall of sentence before the trial court that entered the judgment of conviction in his or her case to request resentencing...." Under section 1170.18, subdivision (b), "[t]he trial court must then determine if the petitioner is eligible for resentencing; if so, the trial court must recall and resentence the petitioner, unless it determines that doing so 'would pose an unreasonable risk of danger to public safety.' " (People v. Scarbrough (2015)
This new reclassification and resentencing procedure applies to Gonzalez's case. Gonzalez pled guilty to a felony violation of section 487, subdivision (c)
*1066for taking property from the body of another person without permission. At the petition hearing, the prosecutor conceded "[t]he amount in question is not really in dispute. It's well below the $950 threshold." New section 490.2, subdivision (a) reclassifies felony section 487, subdivision (c) grand theft violations involving the theft of property that does not exceed $950 as misdemeanors. Moreover, by its plain terms, Proposition 47 entitles an offender to petition for modification of her sentence and empowers the trial court to modify that sentence, whether or not the conviction was obtained by plea agreement. (T.W. v. Superior Court (2015)
Subject to certain exceptions and limitations, the new statute directs the trial court to reclassify Gonzalez's conviction and resentence her. Section 1170.18, subdivision (b) provides: "If the petitioner satisfies the criteria in subdivision (a), the petitioner's felony sentence shall be recalled and the petitioner resentenced to a misdemeanor...." The statutory language is mandatory. The trial court does have discretion to refuse to resentence a petitioner, but only where the court "determines that resentencing the petitioner *538would pose an unreasonable risk of danger to public safety." (§ 1170.18, subd. (b).) The People conceded Gonzalez did not pose an unreasonable risk of danger, so the trial court was required to reclassify her conviction and resentence her.
The People do not contest that the statute purports to convert Gonzalez's felony conviction into a misdemeanor. Instead, they contend that, under California contract law, the express terms of Gonzalez's plea agreement must be enforced as written. Doing so, they argue, precludes resort to Proposition 47 if it would result in resentencing Gonzalez to anything less than the agreed punishment-formal felony probation. We disagree.
A negotiated plea agreement is a form of contract and is interpreted according to general contract principles. (People v. Segura (2008)
The decision in Harris,supra,
The voters accomplished precisely the same result by passing Proposition 47. The initiative proposed to "[r]equire misdemeanors instead of felonies for nonserious, *539nonviolent crimes like petty theft and drug possession." (Voter Information Pamp., Gen. Elec., supra, text of Prop. 47, p. 70, § 3, subd. (3).) It also sought to "[a]uthorize consideration of resentencing for anyone who is currently serving a sentence for any of the offenses listed herein that are now misdemeanors." (Id. at § 3, subd. (4).) The reclassification and resentencing procedure is expressly available retroactively because it applies to anyone "currently serving a sentence for a conviction ... of a felony ... who would have been guilty of a misdemeanor under the act that added this section." (§ 1170.18, subd. (a), italics added.) We conclude, therefore, that the voters of California expressly changed the law for reasons of public policy in a way that is intended to affect the sentences of offenders like Gonzalez, notwithstanding the plea agreement, and that Gonzalez was therefore eligible for resentencing. Moreover, because the People conceded Gonzalez did not pose *1068an unreasonable risk of danger to the public safety, the trial court was required to grant her petition and recall her sentence.
The People contend resentencing Gonzalez frustrates their expectations in entering the plea agreement. While it is true the parties to an agreement "are presumed to have had existing law in mind when they executed their agreement" (Swenson v. File,supra, 3 Cal.3d at p. 394,
The People argue the explicit terms of the plea agreement themselves preclude resentencing Gonzalez to anything less than formal probation. The People support their contention with cases holding that the parties are bound to the terms of a plea agreement (see, e.g., Segura,supra, 44 Cal.4th at pp. 930-931,
*540*1069The Supreme Court's decision in Segura does not require a different result. In that case, the defendant was sentenced to a term of probation on the condition that he serve 365 days in county jail. (Segura,supra, 44 Cal.4th at p. 925,
As the Supreme Court explained in Harris, "the Legislature, for the public good and in furtherance of public policy ... has the authority to modify or invalidate the terms of an agreement." (Harris,supra, 57 Cal.4th at p. 70,
B. Gonzalez Did Not Have the Burden of Proving She Would Have Been Guilty of a Misdemeanor if Tried Under Dismissed Felony Charges.
The People contend "[e]ligibility for relief under section 1170.18, subdivision (a), necessarily requires the court to consider the underlying facts of a defendant's offenses, not simply the statute of conviction" to determine whether petitioner would have been guilty of a misdemeanor under the act that added this section. According to the People, Gonzalez therefore had the burden to establish, under all the facts of her case, that she would not have been guilty of committing felony robbery or felony burglary as originally charged. Because Gonzalez did not present such evidence, the People conclude she "failed to meet her burden to demonstrate eligibility" for resentencing. We disagree with this proposed interpretation of the statute.
Proposition 47 plainly provides a petitioning procedure whereby an offender may seek and obtain resentencing on an *541existing felony conviction *1070by showing Proposition 47 reclassified the crime of conviction as a misdemeanor. Section 1170.18, subdivision (a) provides "[a] person currently serving a sentence for a conviction, whether by trial or plea, of a felony or felonies who would have been guilty of a misdemeanor under the act that added this section ('this act') had this act been in effect at the time of the offense may petition for a recall of sentence ... to request resentencing ...." (Italics added.) If a petitioner qualifies, the remedy in subdivision (b) is "the petitioner's felony sentence shall be recalled and the petitioner resentenced to a misdemeanor...." (Italics added.) The statutory language is entirely focused on resentencing offenders for existing, but reclassified convictions. It says nothing at all about reopening dismissed felony charges or requiring a petitioner to prove she would have avoided conviction of such charges to qualify for resentencing. The state's summary analysis of Proposition 47 made the focus of the statute clear to the voters: "This measure allows offenders currently serving felony sentences for the above crimes to apply to have their felony sentences reduced to misdemeanor sentences." (Voter Information Pamp., Gen. Elec., supra, analysis of Prop. 47 by Legis. Analyst, p. 36, italics added.) Thus, Gonzalez was entitled to resentencing because she would have been guilty of a misdemeanor under her actual conviction for grand theft from a person, and it is irrelevant whether, under the totality of the facts underlying her offense, she would have avoided a guilty verdict for the original robbery and burglary charges.
The People refer us to nothing in the text of Proposition 47 or the official ballot information pamphlet that even suggests a contrary result. Instead, the People rely on a treatise on Proposition 47 prepared for the courts by Judge Couzens and Presiding Justice Bigelow for the point that petitioner has the burden of proof to establish eligibility for resentencing under section 1170.18, subdivision (a). But even that authority appears to foreclose the People's argument. It makes clear the petitioner's burden would be to establish he or she "is currently serving a felony sentence for a crime that would have been a misdemeanor had Proposition 47 been in effect at the time the crime was committed." (Couzens & Bigelow, Proposition 47: "The Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act" (Aug. 2015 rev. ed.) p. 41 < www.courts.ca.gov/documents/Prop-47-Information.pdf>.) Thus, though Gonzalez had the burden of proof as to her eligibility for resentencing (Evid.Code, § 500 ), she carried it by establishing she was serving a felony sentence for an offense that Proposition 47 reclassified as a misdemeanor.
C. Gonzalez's Petition to Recall Her Sentence Does Not Entitle the People to Restore the Dismissed Felony Counts.
The People argue that if Gonzalez "was eligible to petition for resentencing on count 3, such a request constituted a breach of her plea agreement and *1071entitled the People to withdraw from the plea, restore the dismissed counts, and proceed to trial." We disagree.
Proposition 47 does not give the trial court a basis for reopening the case against Gonzalez. Nothing in section 1170.18 or any other provision of Proposition 47 permits a trial court to vacate a conviction or allow the prosecution to withdraw a plea agreement and reinstate dismissed counts. Proposition 47 gave the trial court the authority to determine whether petitioners qualify for resentencing and, if so, to resentence them. (§ 1170.18, subd. (b).) That statutory *542grant of authority is narrow, and the trial court correctly recognized the constraints on its authority.
The People base their contrary argument on People v. Collins (1978)
Collins does not apply in the circumstances of this case. The Legislature repealed the statute under which the Collins defendant had pled guilty after the trial court accepted the plea agreement but before the trial court had imposed sentence. (People v. Collins,supra, 21 Cal.3d at p. 211,
The circumstances in this case are very different. Unlike the defendant in Collins, Gonzalez did not appeal or otherwise attack her conviction or her guilty plea. On the contrary, her conviction remains in place even after the trial court granted her petition. She merely took advantage of a process created by Proposition 47 allowing her to reduce her sentence because it was for a minor theft. As a result, the Supreme Court's decision in Collins does not control this case. We see no basis in that decision or in Proposition 47 for allowing the prosecution to withdraw from the plea agreement and reopen its case against Gonzalez simply because she availed herself of a collateral procedure specifically designed to allow her to reduce her sentence.
At oral argument, the People took the position that we should impute to the electorate knowledge of the holding in Collins and conclude it was anticipated that prosecutors would withdraw from plea *543agreements where a defendant's conviction resulted from a negotiated plea bargain. We disagree. It is well known that the great majority of criminal cases are resolved by negotiated plea (see, e.g., In re Chavez (2003)
We disagree with the Second District, which recently held Collins "addressed head on the question of what happens when a change in law deprives *1073either the People or the defendant of the benefit of the bargain of the plea agreement." (Harris v. Superior Court (2015)
Interpreting Collins broadly to allow the parties to a plea agreement to withdraw when legislation affects the punishment in a way that can be said to deprive a party of the "benefit of the bargain" creates a conflict with the Supreme Court's decision in Doe v. Harris . In Harris, the Supreme Court held a plea agreement is "deemed to incorporate and contemplate ... the reserve power of the state to amend the law or enact additional laws for the public good and in pursuance of public policy." (Harris,supra, 57 Cal.4th at p. 70,
The People also rely on In re Blessing,supra,
We do not find Blessing to be persuasive. In the first place, we are not convinced the Second District was correct to extend the holding in Collins to *1074allow the prosecutor to withdraw from a plea agreement after the conviction had become final based on a reduction of sentence. In any event, Blessing is importantly different from this case. Here, defendant is taking advantage of a policy decision made by the electorate to allow petitions to reduce certain felony sentences to misdemeanor sentences. As we have discussed, under the Supreme Court's ruling in Harris, plea agreements are vulnerable to such changes in public policy enacted by the Legislature or the electorate. (Harris,supra, 57 Cal.4th at pp. 69-70,
III
DISPOSITION
We affirm the order granting defendant's petition for resentencing under section 1170.18.
We concur:
HOLLENHORST, J.
McKINSTER, J.
All unlabeled statutory references are to the Penal Code.
The People argue People v. Arata (2007)
We note as well that it would be impractical, if not unconstitutional, to allow prosecutors to withdraw from plea agreements, reinstate previously dismissed claims, and proceed to trial years after convictions became final.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.