People v. Park
Annotate this CaseAfter a jury trial, Defendant was found guilty of attempted voluntary manslaughter and assault with a firearm. Defendant waived a jury trial on the prior conviction allegations and admitted having suffered a prior serious felony conviction. Defendant informed the court, however, that the prior conviction had been reduced to a misdemeanor. The court sentenced Defendant to a total term of twenty-four years, which included a five-year sentence enhancement under Cal. Penal Code 667(a) based on Defendant's previously having been convicted of a serious felony. The court of appeal upheld imposition of the five-year enhancement, concluding that the prior assault remained a serious felony conviction for purposes of section 667(a), notwithstanding its having been reduced to a misdemeanor pursuant to Cal. Penal Code 17(b)(3) in 2006 and thereafter dismissed altogether. The Supreme Court reversed the judgment of the court of appeal insofar as it upheld imposition of a five-year sentence enhancement pursuant to section 667(a), holding that when the court in the prior proceeding reduced the assault conviction to a misdemeanor, that offense no longer qualified as a prior serious felony within the meaning of section 667(a), and could not be used to enhance Defendant's sentence. Remanded for resentencing.
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