People v. Matthews
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Matthews was charged in three cases, with allegations of a prior strike conviction and five prior prison terms for felony convictions that subjected him to sentence enhancements under Penal Code 667.5(b). He entered into a plea agreement with specific sentences and completed a change of plea form for each case in which he wrote the sentence for that case. The form also was executed by his attorney, the prosecutor and the court. For Case 1 he pled guilty to felony grand theft, with a three-year prison term that would be doubled to six years because of the prior strike. He admitted four of the prior prison term allegations, with four one-year terms; his total sentence would be 10 years, concurrent with the sentences in the other cases. For Case 2, Matthews pled guilty to resisting arrest, with a three-year term. In Case 3, Matthews pled guilty to unlawfully taking a motor vehicle, with a three-year term. The court imposed the stipulated sentences.
The court of appeal, after determining that it had jurisdiction although Matthews had not sought a certificate of probable cause, held that the four one-year terms must be stricken based on a revision to Penal Code section 667.5(b) that eliminates such terms for all but certain prior sexual offenses. The other stipulated sentences imposed should remain intact, thereby reducing his total prison term to six years.
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