People v. Argeta

• Decision Date: 13 November 2012
• Docket Number: No. B229135.,B229135.
• Citation: 210 Cal.App.4th 1478,149 Cal.Rptr.3d 243
• Court: California Court of Appeals Court of Appeals
• Parties: The PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. Cristian ARGETA et al., Defendants and Appellants.

210 Cal.App.4th 1478

149 Cal.Rptr.3d 243

2012 Daily Journal D.A.R. 15,473

The PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent,

v.Cristian ARGETA et al., Defendants and Appellants.

No. B229135.

Court of Appeal, Second District, Division 4, California.

Nov. 13, 2012.

Certified For Partial Publication.^*

See 5 Witkin & Epstein, Cal. Criminal Law (4th ed. 2012) Criminal Trial, § 589.

Joanna McKim, San Diego, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant Cristian Argeta.

Chris R. Redburn, San Francisco, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant Camilo Hernandez.

Kamala D. Harris, Attorney General, Dane R. Gillette, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Lance E. Winters, Assistant Attorney General, Steven D. Matthews and Herbert S. Tetef, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent.

EPSTEIN, P.J.

Defendants Cristian Argeta and Camilo Hernandez appeal from a jury verdict convicting them of one count of murder (Pen.Code, § 187 subd. (a)) and five counts of attempted murder (Pen.Code, §§ 187 subd. (a), 664). ¹ We vacated submission and received further briefing in light of the California Supreme Court's recent decision in People v. Caballero (2012) 55 Cal.4th 262, 145 Cal.Rptr.3d 286, 282 P.3d 291( Caballero ) and the United States Supreme Court's decision in Miller v. Alabama (2012) ––– U.S. ––––, 132 S.Ct. 2455, 183 L.Ed.2d 407( Miller ). In the published portion of this opinion we discuss the application of these decisions to the punishment imposed on the appellants. Based on that analysis, we affirm as to Argeta but conclude the trial court's sentencing determinations regarding Hernandez must be reversed.^**

DISCUSSION

I–VI ^**

VII

Defendants argue that their sentences constitute cruel and/or unusual punishment under the state and federal constitutions. As stated, we vacated earlier submission to consider the recent decisions.

Hernandez claims that since he was 15 years old when the crimes were committed, he was convicted of homicide only as an aider and abettor, and his sentence is functionally equivalent to a sentence of life without parole, the sentence is cruel and unusual under the federal Constitution as well as cruel or unusual under the California Constitution. (See Graham v. Florida (2010) 560 U.S. ––––, 130 S.Ct. 2011, 176 L.Ed.2d 825( Graham );People v. Mendez (2010) 188 Cal.App.4th 47, 114 Cal.Rptr.3d 870( Mendez );Miller, supra, 132 S.Ct. 2455;Caballero, supra, 55 Cal.4th 262, 145 Cal.Rptr.3d 286, 282 P.3d 291.)

In Graham, the Unites States Supreme Court held that sentencing a juvenile to life without the possibility of parole for a nonhomicide offense violates the Eighth Amendment's prohibition of cruel and unusual punishment. ( Graham, supra, 130 S.Ct at p. 2034.) The court noted the “fundamental differences between juvenile and adult minds” and that juveniles are “more capable of change than are adults.” ( Id. at p. 2026.) The Supreme Court next took up the issue in Miller, two companion cases in which minors were convicted of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. ( Miller, supra, 132 S.Ct at p. 2460.) Based on the reasoning in Graham, the court held that it also is a violation of the Eighth Amendment to impose a mandatory life-without-parole sentence upon a juvenile in a homicide case. ( Miller, at pp. 2467–2468.) The court concluded that such penalties “preclude a sentencer from taking account of an offender's age and the wealth of characteristicsand circumstances attendant to it,” namely their “immaturity, impetuosity, and failure to appreciate risks and consequences.” ( Ibid.) Although Miller was a homicide case, the court pointed out that Graham's consideration of the unique characteristics and vulnerabilities of juveniles is not “crime-specific” and its “reasoning implicates any life-without-parole sentence for a juvenile” even if Graham's categorical ban regarding nonhomicide offenses did not. ( Miller, at p. 2458.)

The California Supreme Court addressed another aspect of the issue in Caballero, supra, 55 Cal.4th 262, 145 Cal.Rptr.3d 286, 282 P.3d 291. That case involved a juvenile who was sentenced to 110 years to life for multiple, nonhomicide offenses. ( Id. at pp. 268–269, 145 Cal.Rptr.3d 286, 282 P.3d 291.) The court rejected the argument that a cumulative sentence for distinct crimes does not present an Eighth Amendment issue. ( Ibid.) It found that when a juvenile is sentenced to minimum terms that exceed his or her life expectancy, the punishment is the functional equivalent of a life sentence without the possibility of parole. ( Ibid.) The court concluded the sentence offends the dictates of Graham and constitutes cruel and unusual punishment. ( Caballero, at pp. 268–269, 145 Cal.Rptr.3d 286, 282 P.3d 291.) It also concluded “the state may not deprive [juveniles] at sentencing of a meaningful opportunity to demonstrate their rehabilitation and fitness to reenter society in the future.” ( Id. at p. 268, 145 Cal.Rptr.3d 286, 282 P.3d 291.) In addition, it laid out specific mitigating circumstances that must be considered by a sentencing court before determining at what point juveniles can seek parole, including their age, whether they were a direct perpetrator or an aider and abettor, and their physical and mental development. ( Ibid.)

Here, the trial court imposed a minimum aggregate sentence of 100 years on Hernandez, who was 15 years old at the time of the crime. He was convicted for aiding and abetting Argeta, an adult, in one count of murder and five counts of attempted murder. The People concede that this is the functional equivalent of a life sentence without possibility of parole. For the five counts of attempted homicide alone, Hernandez will face at least 75 years in prison before becoming eligible for parole, a term that in and of itself likely requires that he be in prison for the rest of his life. Based on these circumstances and in light of recent decisions of the United States and California Supreme Courts, we conclude the trial court's sentencing determinations regarding Hernandez must be reversed and the case remanded for resentencing on all counts in a manner consistent with the decision of the United States Supreme Court in Miller and our Supreme Court in Caballero.⁶

Relying on Graham,Mendez,Miller, and Caballero, Argeta contends his sentence is categorically cruel and/or unusual. Argeta was 18 and was convicted of first-degree murder as a principal. His counsel argues that since the crime was committed only five months after Argeta's 18th birthday the rationale applicable to the sentencing of juveniles should apply to him. We do not agree. These arguments regarding sentencing have been made in the past, and “while drawing the line at 18 is subject to the objections always raised against categorical rules, that is the point where society draws the line for many purposes between childhood and adulthood.” ( Roper v. Simmons (2005) 543 U.S. 551, 554, 125 S.Ct. 1183, 161 L.Ed.2d 1; see also Graham, supra, 130 S.Ct. at p. 2016.) Making an exception for a defendant who committed a crime just 5 months past his 18th birthday opens the door for the next defendant who is only 6 months into adulthood. Such arguments would have no logical end, and so a line must be drawn at some point. We respect the line our society has drawn and which the United States Supreme Court has relied on for sentencing purposes, and conclude Argeta's sentence is not cruel and/or unusual under Graham,Miller, or Caballero.

VIII–IX ^***

DISPOSITION

As to Argeta, the judgment is modified to reflect a total of 690 days of presentence credit. In all other respects the judgment is affirmed. The trial court is...