California v. Nilsson
Annotate this CaseDefendant Dennis Nilsson, the facilities superintendent for the Sacramento Public Library Authority (Library), was involved in several schemes to receive kickbacks for Library maintenance work provided by outside contractors. One of these schemes included defendant James Earle Mayle, Sr., who was also a Library employee, and defendant Mayle’s wife, defendant Janie Mae Rankins-Mayle, who was not a Library employee. The scheme involving all three defendants resulted in a loss of more than $780,000 to the Library. Defendants were convicted of grand theft, embezzlement, offering or receiving a bribe, and conflict of interest. After review of their arguments on appeal, the Court of Appeal concluded that: (1) as to defendants Mayle and Rankins-Mayle, the Court struck an enhancement imposed under Penal Code section 186.11 because the prosecution did not meet the pleading and proof requirement; (2) as to defendant Nilsson, the Court struck one count of grand theft because the law applicable at the time he committed his crimes permitted only one grand theft conviction for multiple takings done pursuant to a single overarching scheme; and (3) as to defendant Nilsson, the trial court had to properly indicate in the abstract of judgment what restitution was subject to joint and several liability. Finding no other prejudicial error, the Court made these modifications to the convictions, affirmed the convictions as modified, reversed the sentence, and remanded for resentencing and preparation of amended abstracts of judgment.
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