Opinion
F075873
04-17-2018
THE PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. MANUEL GARCIA, Defendant and Appellant.
John L. Staley, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant. Office of the Attorney General, Sacramento, California, for Plaintiff and Respondent.
NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 8.1115(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115. (Fresno Super. Ct. No. F16904319)
OPINION
THE COURT APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of Fresno County. Michael G. Idiart, Judge. John L. Staley, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant. Office of the Attorney General, Sacramento, California, for Plaintiff and Respondent.
Before Levy, Acting P.J., Poochigian, J. and Detjen, J.
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INTRODUCTION
Appellant/defendant Manuel Garcia pleaded no contest to battery with serious body injury and was sentenced to the second strike term of six years pursuant to a plea agreement. On appeal, his appellate counsel has filed a brief that summarizes the facts with citations to the record, raises no issues, and asks this court to independently review the record. (People v. Wende (1979) 25 Cal.3d 436 (Wende).) We affirm.
FACTS
The facts are from the preliminary hearing transcript.
Hector Gaonno and his wife separated in 2014. After the separation, they were still legally married and she periodically stayed at Gaonno's house, even though he did not want her to. Gaonno knew that defendant was his wife's boyfriend.
On June 15, 2016, Gaonno's wife was staying at the house, and she put some of defendant's belongings in Gaonno's house. When Gaonno left for work, he told her to move defendant's items out of the house by the time he got home, or he would do so. When Gaonno got home that day, defendant's belongings were still there, and he threw the items outside the house.
On the morning of June 16, 2016, Gaonno was inside his house and heard someone banging on an outside wall. His wife was present and also heard the noise. Gaonno looked outside and saw defendant and an unknown male. Gaonno opened the front door and encountered defendant and the second man. They were yelling at him. Gaonno believed defendant was mad because of the dispute about defendant's belongings in his house.
Gaonno told defendant and the second man that they could not cause a disruption at his house. Gaonno's car keys were in his pocket, and he was about to reach for his cell phone. Defendant and the second man entered the house, and defendant beat Gaonno. Defendant hit Gaonno in the face, head, neck, and back. Gaonno heard his wife yell at them to stop. Gaonno became dazed and fell down.
When Gaonno recovered, he discovered that his wife, defendant and the other man were gone. Gaonno's car keys and cell phone were missing. He went outside and realized his vehicle was no longer in the driveway. He called 911.
When the police arrived, they found Gaonno's vehicle parked on the street in front of a neighbor's house. His keys had been thrown on the driveway pavement. Defendant was not apprehended that day.
Gaonno was taken to the hospital and treated for multiple injuries. He had bruises and swelling around his eyes, face, and the back of his head. He needed stitches above his right eye, and he had a broken bone in his neck.
On July 6, 2016, an officer was on patrol and saw defendant walking a bicycle on the street. The officer recognized defendant and knew he was wanted for a robbery. Defendant saw the police car; he jumped on the bicycle and rode away through traffic. The officer called for backup assistance; additional officers followed defendant and ordered him to stop. Defendant ignored their orders, but lost control of the bicycle and fell down. When officers tried to approach him, he assumed a fighting stance and resisted. He was restrained and taken into custody. He was in possession of a backpack that contained methamphetamine. Procedural history
On February 23, 2017, a first amended information was filed that charged defendant with count 1, home invasion robbery (Pen. Code, § 211); count 2, first degree residential burglary (§§ 459/460), with a great bodily injury enhancement (§ 12022.7, subd (a)); and count 3, battery with serious body injury (§ 243, subd. (d)); with one prior strike conviction, one prior serious felony enhancement, and two prior prison term enhancements.
All further statutory citations are to the Penal Code unless otherwise indicated. --------
On May 25, 2017, defendant pleaded no contest to count 3, battery with serious bodily injury. He admitted the prior strike conviction and the infliction of great bodily injury to make the offense a serious felony (§ 969f), with a stipulated sentence of six years. The court granted the prosecution's motion to dismiss the remaining charges, plus the allegations in case No. 14902212, pursuant to the plea agreement.
On June 23, 2017, the court denied probation and sentenced defendant to the midterm of three years for count 3, doubled to six years as the second strike term.
On June 26, 2017, defendant filed a timely notice of appeal; he did not request or receive a certificate of probable cause.
DISCUSSION
As noted above, defendant's counsel has filed a Wende brief with this court. The brief also includes the declaration of appellate counsel indicating that appellant was advised he could file his own brief with this court. By letter on September 20, 2017, we invited defendant to submit additional briefing. To date, he has not done so.
After independent review of the record, we find that no reasonably arguable factual or legal issues exist.
DISPOSITION
The judgment is affirmed.