State v. Mendoza
Decision Date | 21 November 2019 |
Docket Number | No. 1 CA-CR 18-0512,1 CA-CR 18-0512 |
Citation | 455 P.3d 705,248 Ariz. 6 |
Parties | STATE of Arizona, Appellee, v. Vincent MENDOZA, Appellant. |
Court | Arizona Court of Appeals |
Arizona Attorney General’s Office, Phoenix, By Eric Knobloch Counsel for Appellee
Maricopa County Public Defender’s Office, Phoenix, By Paul J. Prato Counsel for Appellant
¶1 Vincent Mendoza appeals his conviction and sentence for one count of aggravated driving or actual physical control of a vehicle while under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs, a class 4 felony. We hold: (1) a superior court judge who, in violation of Arizona Rule of Criminal Procedure ("Rule") 17.4(a)(2), participates in settlement discussions between a defendant and the State without the parties’ consent, errs by thereafter presiding over that defendant’s trial and sentencing; (2) such error is fundamental if the totality of the circumstances raises a presumption of judicial vindictiveness; and (3) if the presumption is unrebutted by the State, it requires the defendant to be either resentenced or retried before a different judge. Because we find an unrebutted presumption of judicial vindictiveness exists regarding Mendoza’s sentence, we affirm his conviction but vacate his sentence and remand for resentencing before a different superior court judge.
¶2 On a night in October 2016, Officer Jaime Cole, a patrol officer with the Goodyear Police Department, noticed Mendoza’s vehicle traveling northbound at speed slower than the posted speed limit. Cole decided to follow the car and soon saw that Mendoza was having trouble staying in his lane. Mendoza nearly struck a curb while executing a lane change and crossed over a solid white fog line. Based on these observations, Cole initiated a traffic stop. Mendoza was seated in the driver’s seat. As Cole spoke with Mendoza, she noticed Mendoza’s eyes were red, bloodshot, and watery; he had difficulty multi-tasking; and the odor of alcohol was coming from inside the vehicle. Mendoza admitted to Cole that he drank six beers that night and had an ignition interlock device installed in the vehicle "to prevent this," and added that a friend had blown into the machine to allow him to drive the car. Eventually, Cole arrested Mendoza for driving under the influence.
¶3 At the police station, Mendoza underwent blood and breath testing. The blood testing returned a blood alcohol concentration of 0.128. The breath testing returned results of 0.119 and 0.117. After the screening, Mendoza waived his Miranda2 rights, and Officer Cole interviewed him. During the interview, Mendoza again admitted drinking at least six beers earlier that night but denied that he felt the effects of the alcohol or that he was impaired to the slightest degree.
¶4 The State charged Mendoza with one count of driving or actual physical control while under the influence of intoxicating liquor and under a court order to equip a certified ignition interlock device ("Count 1") and one count of driving or actual physical control while he had an alcohol concentration of 0.08 or more in his body within two hours of the time of driving and while under a court order to equip a certified ignition interlock device ("Count 2"), both class 4 felonies. In March 2018, during a status conference before the assigned trial judge, the parties indicated to the court that the State had offered a plea agreement with that day as the deadline for Mendoza to accept or reject it. Mendoza’s counsel stated that Mendoza "wanted to discuss the case with the Court." The court agreed and proceeded to inform Mendoza of the charges, their elements, and that the plea offer was for nine years’ imprisonment.
¶5 Upon further questioning, the State asserted that because Mendoza had two prior historical felony convictions for aggravated driving under the influence and aggravated assault involving a vehicle, he would be sentenced as a category three repetitive offender if convicted, Ariz. Rev. Stat. ("A.R.S.") § 13-703(C), and that under A.R.S. § 13-703(J), he would face a sentencing range of 6 to 15 years. The court then made the following statements to Mendoza:
The court continued to discuss Mendoza’s case with him, including the sentence he would receive if he went to trial and was convicted, with little intervention from either Mendoza’s counsel or the State. The following colloquy occurred during this conversation:
At the end of the hearing, Mendoza rejected the State’s plea offer, and the case went to trial. The same superior court judge who participated in the March 2018 ad hoc settlement conference presided over the trial.
¶6 After a four-day trial, the jury found Mendoza guilty of Count 1 but acquitted him of Count 2. Before Mendoza’s sentencing, the Maricopa County Adult Probation Department prepared a presentence report that recommended Mendoza be sentenced to the presumptive term of imprisonment, 10 years. The court found that Mendoza had four prior felony convictions—two of which were historical—and proceeded to sentencing. In considering the mitigators at issue in the case, the court acknowledged Mendoza had sought treatment while awaiting trial but explained that:
There is no acceptance of responsibility. There is no remorse. There is none of the mitigators that you get when you take a plea. I explain to people that ... means that just doesn’t exist in that pile any longer. There is no punishment for taking a case to trial. However, I hear a lot more in the trial than I ever hear when somebody does a plea.
The court found as aggravating circumstances that Mendoza committed the offense a short time after being released from prison, he circumvented the ignition interlock device to drive his vehicle, and he was driving with a passenger in his car. The court also found that Mendoza had previously been convicted of aggravated driving under the influence within the ten years preceding the date of the offense, a statutory aggravator. A.R.S. § 13-701(D)(11). The court concluded the maximum sentence was appropriate and sentenced Mendoza to 12 years’ imprisonment with 315 days’ presentence incarceration credit. After rendering its sentence, the court stated:
The aggravators are just exceptional and my concern for the safety of the community given what I heard during the trial is —I’m very concerned. So based on that I don’t think I can give any less than [12 years].
Mendoza appealed, and we have jurisdiction under A.R.S. §§ 12-120.21(A)(1), 13-4031, and -4033(A)(1).
¶7 Mendoza’s appellate counsel filed a brief in accordance with Anders v. California , 386 U.S. 738, 87 S.Ct. 1396, 18 L.Ed.2d 493 (1967), and State v. Leon , 104 Ariz. 297, 451 P.2d 878 (1969), certifying that, after a diligent search of the record, he found no arguable question of law that was not frivolous. Counsel asked this court to search the record for arguable issues. See Penson v. Ohio , 488 U.S. 75, 109...
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