The Court of Appeal agreed with the parties that Assembly Bill No. 333 applies retroactively to the appellant’s gang enhancements and vicarious firearm enhancements, and further held that AB 333 did not unconstitutionally amend Proposition 21 as applied to Penal Code sections 190.2, subdivision (a)(22) and 186.22. Additionally, prejudicial error occurred when the jury was not instructed that to find the gang allegations true, it had to find that the benefit to the gang from both the current offenses and the predicate offenses was more than reputational. The court vacated the appellant’s gang enhancements, vicarious firearm enhancements, and gang-murder special circumstance findings and remanded the matter so as to afford the People the opportunity to retry those allegations.
Name: People v. Sutton
Case #: F079285
Opinion Date: 01/26/2023
Attorney: Kendall Dawson Wasley
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