People v. Turnage
Annotate this CaseDefendant, an ex-felon on probation, planted an object near a government building that resembled a bomb and that caused fear and disruption when discovered. Defendant was convicted of violating Cal. Penal Code 148.1(d), which allows misdemeanor or felony punishment for anyone who maliciously places a false bomb with the intent to cause another person to fear for his own safety or the safety of others. Defendant's sentence included a twenty-five-years-to-life three strikes term based on the section 148.1(d) felony count and his prior serious and violent felony convictions. The court of appeal reduced the section 148.1(d) conviction to a misdemeanor, finding that the felony provision under which Defendant was convicted and sentenced denied him equal protection of the law when compared to an entirely different statute, Cal. Penal Code 11418.1, which provides that anyone who places a WMD with the intent to cause fear in others can be convicted of a felony only if the perpetrator's conduct causes another person to be placed in sustained fear, an element not necessary under the false bomb statute. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that no equal protection violation occurred, as the challenged distinction was not irrational.
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