People v. Soto
Annotate this CaseSoto was convicted of second-degree murder in 1996. The court of appeal affirmed. He unsuccessfully moved to vacate his murder conviction and be resentenced under Penal Code section 1170.95, citing Senate Bill No. 1437, which made statutory changes effective January 1, 2019. Soto claimed that he was convicted as an aider and abettor of murder on a natural and probable consequences theory and could not be convicted of murder on that basis under current law. Soto’s appointed counsel filed a brief that raised no issues. Soto filed a supplemental brief on his own behalf. The court of appeal requested supplemental briefing on whether the trial court erred in not issuing an order to show cause where its order denying Soto’s petition relied on information drawn from the record of conviction and, if so, whether any error was harmless. The court subsequently affirmed the denial of Soto’s petition to vacate his murder conviction. The jury instructions given at his trial conclusively demonstrate as a matter of law that he was not convicted of murder under a natural and probable consequences theory or of felony murder. Soto was convicted as a direct aider and abettor to second-degree murder.
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