Appellant was resentenced following an earlier appeal to 42 years to life in state prison for two counts each of forcible oral copulation, kidnap, and carjacking. On appeal he contended that the trial court erred by imposing a full consecutive term for the second count of oral copulation without a jury finding that the offenses occurred on separate occasions. The appellate court here affirmed the sentence. The specific fact of whether multiple offenses against the same victim occurred on separate occasions is not an element of the offense, and does not come into play until the defendant has already been convicted of multiple separate offenses. The trial court properly made the finding it did by a preponderance of evidence and without submitting the issue to a jury.
Case Summaries