People v. Mirzakhanyan CA2/8 ( 2020 )


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  • Filed 11/2/20 P. v. Mirzakhanyan CA2/8
    Opinion following transfer from Supreme Court
    NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS
    California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions
    not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 8.1115(b). This opinion
    has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.
    IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA
    SECOND APPELLATE DISTRICT
    DIVISION EIGHT
    THE PEOPLE,                                                     B290629
    Plaintiff and Respondent,                              (Los Angeles County
    Super. Ct. No. GA100960)
    v.
    EMIN MIRZAKHANYAN,
    Defendant and Appellant.
    APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of Los
    Angeles County, Stanley Blumenfeld, Judge. Conditionally
    reversed as modified and remanded with direction.
    Christopher Muller, under appointment by the Court of
    Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant.
    Xavier Becerra, Attorney General, Gerald A. Engler, Chief
    Assistant Attorney General, Lance E. Winters, Assistant
    Attorney General, Louis W. Karlin and Kim Aarons, Deputy
    Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent.
    _________________________
    INTRODUCTION
    Defendant and appellant Emin Mirzakhanyan suffers from
    a psychiatric disorder that likely played a significant role in two
    serious disturbances that gave rise to two felony and four
    misdemeanor convictions. Over the course of the proceedings,
    Mirzakhanyan was given several opportunities to seek or
    participate in mental health treatment in lieu of detention and
    prosecution. Mirzakhanyan would not avail himself of these
    opportunities because he was vehemently opposed to taking
    psychotropic medication. He therefore proceeded to a jury trial
    and was convicted of two counts of felony vandalism, and one
    count each of misdemeanor trespass, criminal threats, battery,
    and battery on a peace officer. Because Mirzakhanyan would not
    commit to any mental health treatment programs that
    potentially involved medication, the court denied his request for
    probation.
    Mirzakhanyan appealed his misdemeanor convictions for
    trespass and battery. He also asked us to remand his case to the
    sentencing court for a hearing to determine his eligibility for a
    newly-enacted mental health diversion program set out in Penal
    Code section 1001.36. Mirzakhanyan also challenged the
    propriety of a protective order issued against him, and alleged
    the court miscalculated his pre-trial conduct credit.
    In our prior opinion we concluded the misdemeanor
    convictions for trespass and battery are supported by substantial
    evidence, and that a remand for mental health diversion would
    have been futile. We agreed with Mirzakhanyan that the
    protective order must be vacated and that he is entitled to an
    additional 12 days of conduct credit.
    2
    We affirmed the judgment, vacated the protective order,
    and directed the court to award Mirzakhanyan a total of 320 days
    conduct credit.
    Mirzakhanyan then filed a petition for review arguing we
    should have remanded the convictions to the trial court to
    consider whether he was eligible for mental health diversion
    under the new statute. On January 29, 2020, the Supreme Court
    granted appellant’s petition for review and deferred further
    consideration of the petition pending its decision in People v.
    Frahs, which was filed on June 18, 2020. (People v. Frahs (2020)
    
    9 Cal. 5th 618
    (Frahs).) On August 26, 2020, the Supreme Court
    directed us to vacate our prior decision and to reconsider the
    cause in light of Frahs, which held the mental health diversion
    statute retroactive to cases pending as of the effective date of the
    statute. Upon reconsideration we now find substantial evidence
    supports the judgment of conviction; vacate the protective order;
    award additional conduct custody credits; and conditionally
    reverse the judgment of conviction and remand to the trial court
    to determine whether appellant is eligible for mental health
    diversion under Penal Code section 1001.36.
    FACTUAL BACKGROUND
    I.    The Trespass Count: The Lexus Dealership
    On April 17, 2017, Mirzakhanyan walked into a Lexus
    dealership and told the sales manager he was there to pick up his
    car. The manager, William West, recognized Mirzakhanyan
    because Mirzakhanyan had visited the dealership twice before.
    On each prior visit, Mirzakhanyan became very loud, and yelled
    and cursed. The most recent visit had been a few days earlier,
    when Mirzakhanyan was arrested by police officers after he was
    3
    found pacing in front of the dealership spitting on the windows.
    Each time, West told Mirzakhanyan he was not allowed to
    return.
    West attempted to de-escalate the situation by asking
    Mirzakhanyan which salesperson he had been working with.
    Mirzakhanyan said he could not recall. West then asked which
    car he was buying, and Mirzakhanyan pointed to a Lexus LX 570
    in the showroom. Mirzakhanyan demanded to speak with the
    dealership owner, stating, “I’m crazy. I have been off my meds
    for three days.” Mirzakhanyan also told West he had been to the
    dealership before and West had “put him in jail for two months.”
    Mirzakhanyan became increasingly agitated and started
    damaging the LX 570. He attempted to pull the front grille off,
    kicked the body, and kicked and punched the mirrors and glass.
    Mirzakhanyan then got inside the car, punched through the
    windshield, ripped off the rearview mirror, and ripped the
    navigation system from the dashboard. Mirzakhanyan exited the
    car, kicked it again, and attempted to damage other cars in the
    showroom. He pulled the side mirrors off one car and punched
    the mirrors and glass of two others. The damage to the LX 570
    alone was more than $28,000.
    After damaging the cars, Mirzakhanyan stood on a water
    feature, started yelling, and began splashing water on people in
    the dealership. At one point, Mirzakhanyan said, “I will come
    back and shoot everyone.” Police officers arrived and placed
    Mirzakhanyan under arrest.
    4
    II.    The Battery Count: The Altana Apartments
    Five weeks later, on May 25, 2017, Mirzakhanyan went to
    the Altana apartment complex in Glendale. The apartment
    manager, Morgan Loy, saw Mirzakhanyan pick up a six-foot-tall
    advertising sign in front of the complex and throw it into the
    middle of the street. Mirzakhanyan started jumping on the sign
    and yelling while in the middle of the street.
    The apartment’s service manager, Mark Roe, and a service
    technician, Sergio Ramirez, were inside the apartment complex
    and saw Mirzakhanyan’s outburst through the front windows.
    Roe went outside and locked the entrance to the building. After
    jumping on the sign, Mirzakhanyan tried to enter the building
    through the entrance Roe had locked. Employees told
    Mirzakhanyan he could not enter the building; he nevertheless
    walked past Roe and tried to open the door several times.
    Mirzakhanyan then turned to his left toward several three-
    feet high planters, grabbed some of the gravel from one of the
    planters with both of his hands, and threw it in Roe’s direction.
    At the time, Roe was standing behind Mirzakhanyan. The gravel
    hit Roe’s face and torso, after which Roe grabbed Mirzakhanyan
    and pulled him into the street. A struggle ensued, and two other
    members of the maintenance team helped Roe pin Mirzakhanyan
    to the ground. They kept him there as the officers arrived.
    As he was being arrested, Mirzakhanyan screamed to Roe,
    “I’m going to kill you and your family.” He told Roe he knew
    where Roe worked and, “your family [is] going to die.”
    As Officers Insalaco and Hamilton were driving
    Mirzakhanyan to the Los Angeles County jail, Mirzakhanyan
    continuously spat on Hamilton, covering the back of his head, his
    uniform, and his badge with saliva. Mirzakhanyan also covered
    5
    the outer edge of the front passenger seat and keyboard with
    saliva.
    Mirzakhanyan caused approximately $900 worth of
    damage to the sign.
    In or about March of 2018, approximately two months
    before trial, Mirzakhanyan showed up at the Altana apartment
    complex and confronted Roe. Mirzakhanyan asked Roe, “Do you
    remember me,” to which Roe replied, “Yes, I do. You look a lot
    better. Are you on medicine?” Mirzakhanyan responded, “You’re
    a motherfucker. You fucking lied to the court. You lied to
    everybody. I’m going to fucking own this place. This place
    Altana. I’m going to own it.”
    III.  Procedural Background
    On May 15, 2017, Mirzakhanyan was charged with felony
    vandalism (Pen. Code, § 594, subds. (a) & (b)(1))1, and
    misdemeanor trespass (§ 602, subd. (m)) based on the incident at
    the Lexus dealership.
    On June 5, 2017, the trial court declared a doubt as to
    Mirzakhanyan’s competence to stand trial pursuant to section
    1368. On July 11, 2017, Mirzakhanyan was declared competent.
    For the incident at the Altana apartment complex,
    Mirzakhanyan was charged on August 7, 2017 with felony
    vandalism (§ 594, subd. (a) & (b)(1)), misdemeanor criminal
    threats (§ 422, subd. (a)), misdemeanor simple battery (§§ 242
    & 243, subd. (a)), and misdemeanor battery of a peace officer
    (§242 & 243, subd. (b)).
    1
    All further references are to the Penal Code unless
    otherwise indicated.
    6
    On August 23, 2017, defense counsel declared a doubt as to
    appellant’s competence; the court found Mirzakhanyan
    incompetent to stand trial and remanded him for treatment to
    Patton State Hospital. On January 3, 2018, Patton State
    Hospital certified Mirzakhanyan as competent to stand trial and
    on January 18, 2018, the trial court found him competent to
    stand trial.
    On April 13, 2018, the two cases were consolidated.
    Mirzakhanyan was charged via amended information on May 10,
    2018 with two counts of felony vandalism (§ 594, subd. (a) counts
    1 and 3); misdemeanor trespass (§ 602, subd. (k); count 2);
    misdemeanor criminal threats (§ 422, subd. (a); count 4);
    misdemeanor battery (§ 242, count 5); and misdemeanor battery
    on a peace officer (§ 243, subd. (b); count 6). The information
    further alleged Mirzakhanyan committed counts 3 through 6
    while released on bail.
    On May 18, 2018, a jury found Mirzakhanyan guilty of all
    counts as charged. Mirzakhanyan admitted the truth of the bail
    allegation.
    The court sentenced Mirzakhanyan to a total of five years
    in county jail, comprised of the low term of 16 months for count 1,
    one-third of the middle term of eight months for count 3, six
    months for count 4, six months for count 6, and two years for the
    bail enhancement. The court also imposed and stayed a six-
    month term for count 2 pursuant to section 654, and a 30-day
    term for count 5 to run concurrently to count 1. The court
    ordered Mirzakhanyan to serve three years of his five-year
    sentence. The court suspended the remaining two years of the
    sentence while Mirzakhanyan was placed on mandatory
    supervision pursuant to section 1170, subdivision (h)(5)(B).
    7
    The court also issued a three-year protective order
    pursuant to section 136.2, ordering Mirzakhanyan to stay away
    from Mark Roe, Officer Hamilton, the Lexus dealership, and the
    Altana apartment complex.
    Mirzakhanyan timely appealed.
    DISCUSSION
    Mirzakhanyan alleges on appeal that substantial evidence
    does not support the jury’s verdicts in counts 2 and 5; he is
    entitled to a hearing to determine whether he is eligible for
    mental health diversion; the criminal protective order must be
    vacated; and he is entitled to 12 additional days of conduct credit.
    We conclude substantial evidence supports count 2 and 5,
    and affirm the judgment. The protective order, however, must be
    vacated. Additionally, the People concede, and we agree, that
    Mirzakhanyan is entitled to an additional 12 days conduct credit
    and that he is entitled to a hearing to determine whether he is
    eligible for mental health diversion.
    I.    The Verdicts in Counts 2 and 5 are Supported by
    Substantial Evidence
    A.    Standard of Review
    When a defendant challenges the sufficiency of the
    evidence to support a judgment, we review the evidence under
    the familiar and deferential substantial evidence standard.
    (People v. Hicks (1982) 
    128 Cal. App. 3d 423
    , 429.) Substantial
    evidence is evidence that is “reasonable, credible, and of solid
    value.” (People v. Rodriguez (1999) 
    20 Cal. 4th 1
    , 11.) We review
    the record in the light most favorable to the judgment and
    presume the existence of every fact the trier could reasonably
    deduce from the evidence. (People v. Lee (2011) 
    51 Cal. 4th 8
    620, 632.) It is the “ ‘exclusive province of the trial judge or jury
    to determine the credibility of a witness,’ ” and to determine the
    weight to be given to the testimony adduced at trial. (Ibid.;
    Hicks, at p. 429.) Reversal under this standard of review “is
    unwarranted unless it appears ‘that upon no hypothesis
    whatever is there sufficient substantial evidence to support [the
    conviction].’ ” (People v. Bolin (1998) 
    18 Cal. 4th 297
    , 331.)
    B.       Count 2: Trespass
    Mirzakhanyan alleges his trespass conviction must be
    reversed because the jury’s conclusion that Mirzakhanyan
    intended to disrupt the Lexus dealership’s business when he
    entered the premises was not supported by substantial evidence.
    We disagree.
    Section 602, subdivision (k) criminalizes “[e]ntering any
    lands . . . for the purpose of injuring any property . . . or with the
    intention of interfering with, obstructing, or injuring any lawful
    business or occupation carried on by . . . the person in lawful
    possession.” The People argued Mirzakhanyan entered the Lexus
    dealership with the intent to damage its property or interfere
    with its business. Mirzakhanyan argued to the jury that he did
    not intend to damage or disrupt the business when he entered; he
    only became agitated and disrupted when his request for a car
    was denied. The jury agreed with the People and we have no
    reason to second guess its decision.
    The evidence demonstrates that Mirzakhanyan had been to
    the dealership several times in the past, was escorted out by
    police, and was told not to return. The most recent incident had
    occurred only a few days before the incident in this case. It led to
    Mirzakhanyan’s prior arrest, which Mirzakhanyan directly
    blamed on West. The jury could reasonably conclude that
    9
    Mirzakhanyan, knowing he had been banned from the dealership
    and angry at West for having him arrested, returned to cause yet
    another disruption.
    Mirzakhanyan’s reliance on In re Wallace (1970) 
    3 Cal. 3d 289
    does not assist him. There, the defendants were arrested for
    handing out leaflets at a county fair protesting the effects of
    automation on farm workers. (Id. at p. 291.) A security guard
    told the defendants that distributing the leaflets was not
    permitted and asked them to leave. (Id. at p. 294.) They were
    invited to return if they left their signs and leaflets behind.
    (Ibid.) The defendants re-entered one or two hours later,
    resumed their leafleting activity, and refused to leave. (Ibid.)
    Our Supreme Court concluded there was no illegal trespass,
    largely because the defendants did not actually obstruct any
    activities at the fair. (Id. at pp. 294–295.) It was therefore
    evident that their only intent was to convey information, not to
    disrupt the activities on the premises. (Id. at p. 294.) Wallace
    establishes that merely returning to a business or property after
    being asked to leave, without more, does not necessarily prove
    the requisite intent necessary to support a conviction for
    trespass.
    In In re Ball (1972) 
    23 Cal. App. 3d 380
    , however, the
    defendant not only returned after being asked to leave, but then
    proceeded to actually obstruct business. There, the defendant
    entered a Disneyland parking lot and set up a table to gather
    signatures and donations for an anti-pollution initiative. (Id. at
    p. 385.) Disneyland had already denied the defendant permission
    to engage in this conduct, and suggested the defendant set up a
    table outside the Disneyland property. (Ibid.) Instead of doing
    so, the defendant set up his table in an area that blocked the
    10
    tram transporting passengers between the parking lot and ticket
    booth. (Ibid.) Disneyland therefore had to divert offloading of
    the tram to another area. (Ibid.) The defendant was asked
    several times to leave, but only complied once he was issued a
    citation. (Id. at pp. 385–386.) The Fourth District concluded the
    defendant’s intent to obstruct business could be inferred from his
    conduct once he entered the lot in addition to his deliberate entry
    into the lot after being denied permission to do so. (Id. at p. 387.)
    In re Ball stands for the proposition that one can infer an intent
    to obstruct business when a defendant not only returns after
    being instructed not to, but also actually obstructs the business.
    That is what happened here. Mirzakhanyan was not only
    told twice to leave the dealership and not return, he was also
    arrested and escorted from the property by law enforcement days
    before the incident at the dealership. When he did nonetheless
    return on April 17, he actually interfered with business by
    destroying property, yelling, and splashing water on customers.
    This constitutes reasonable, credible evidence from which the
    jury may infer Mirzakhanyan intended to cause a disruption
    when he entered the Lexus dealership. This is far from a case in
    which “ ‘upon no hypothesis’ ” is the evidence substantial enough
    to support the trespass conviction. (People v. 
    Bolin, supra
    ,
    18 Cal.4th at p. 331.)
    C.    Count 5: Battery on Roe
    Mirzakhanyan alleges there was not substantial evidence
    to support the jury’s conclusion that he willfully struck Roe
    because he was not looking in Roe’s direction when he threw the
    gravel. We disagree.
    11
    The video evidence confirms that Roe was standing behind
    Mirzakhanyan when Mirzakhanyan threw the gravel in his
    direction, and that Mirzakhanyan was not looking at Roe when
    he threw the gravel at him. The video does not, however,
    establish that Mirzakhanyan did not know that Roe or any of the
    other maintenance workers were behind him. To the contrary,
    the video shows Mirzakhanyan walking directly through a group
    of four maintenance workers before he attempted to open the
    door to the apartment complex. One of the maintenance workers
    positioned himself directly in front of Mirzakhanyan.
    Immediately afterward, Mirzakhanyan walked to the planter,
    and Roe followed closely behind him before he threw the rocks in
    Roe’s direction.
    Additionally, Roe testified he told Mirzakhanyan not to
    enter the building and Mirzakhanyan walked right past him
    upon entering the building. Roe also testified, and the video
    confirms, that Roe was the person closest to Mirzakhanyan when
    Mirzakhanyan threw the gravel out of the planter in Roe’s
    direction. Finally, another maintenance worker testified he and
    other workers were walking behind Mirzakhanyan as he
    approached the planter, and that Mirzakhanyan was aware of
    their presence.
    The jury could reasonably deduce from this evidence that
    Mirzakhanyan knew Roe and the other maintenance workers
    were behind him when he threw the gravel in their direction.
    (People v. 
    Lee, supra
    , 51 Cal.4th at p. 632.) Reviewing the record
    in the light most favorable to the judgment, we conclude there is
    substantial evidence from which a rational jury could find
    Mirzakhanyan guilty of battery. (People v. 
    Rodriguez, supra
    ,
    20 Cal.4th at p. 11.)
    12
    II.    We Remand for a Mental Health Diversion Eligibility
    Hearing
    To be granted diversion under the new statute, a defendant
    must satisfy six criteria. Among them are that the defendant
    consent to diversion and agree to comply with treatment as a
    condition of diversion. (§ 1001.36, subds. (b)(1)(C) & (D).) In the
    trial court the record was clear that Mirzakhanyan’s refusal to
    take psychotropic medication drove a number of important
    decisions he had to make over the course of the proceedings. His
    persistent and unwavering refusal to consider medication
    convinced us the trial court would find him ineligible for
    diversion, even if the statute were applied retroactively.
    However, in Frahs, our Supreme Court held that a
    “conditional limited remand for the trial court to conduct a
    mental health diversion eligibility hearing is warranted when . . .
    the record affirmatively discloses that the defendant appears to
    meet at least the first threshold eligibility requirement for
    mental health diversion—the defendant suffers from a qualifying
    mental disorder.” 
    (Frahs, supra
    , 9 Cal.5th at p. 640.) For those
    appellants whose eligibility depends on retroactive application of
    the statute, the court did not require a showing on any of the
    other six factors to obtain a remand because the record on appeal
    is “unlikely to include information pertaining to several eligibility
    factors” and requiring more would be “onerous and impractical.”
    (Id. at p. 638.) Here, prior to trial, Mirzakhanyan was declared
    incompetent to stand trial and was sent to Patton State Hospital
    for treatment to restore his competence. In the course of his
    treatment, he was diagnosed with “Bipolar Disorder Most Recent
    Episode Manic Severe with Psychotic Features.” It was also
    noted that he believed he was “Jesus Christ and 666.”
    13
    Bipolar disorder is a qualifying mental illness. (§ 1001.36,
    subdivision (b)(1)(A) [specifying bipolar disorder is a qualifying
    mental illness].) Mirzakhanyan’s diagnosis establishes his
    eligibility for remand. Therefore, consistent with the Supreme
    Court’s directive, we will conditionally reverse the judgment and
    remand for a mental health diversion eligibility hearing pursuant
    to the instructions we set forth below. “We express no view
    regarding whether defendant will be able to show eligibility on
    remand or whether the trial court should exercise its discretion to
    grant diversion if it finds him eligible.” 
    (Frahs, supra
    , 9 Cal.5th
    at p. 625.)
    III.  The Criminal Protective Order Must be Vacated
    At sentencing, the trial court entered a three-year criminal
    protective order pursuant to section 136.2 for Roe and Officer
    Hamilton, with stay-away provisions for the Lexus dealership
    and Altana apartment complex. Mirzakhanyan alleges the court
    was not authorized to issue the protective order under section
    136.2 and we agree.
    Orders made under section 136.2 “are ‘operative only
    during the pendency of criminal proceedings and as prejudgment
    orders.’ ” (People v. Scott (2012) 
    203 Cal. App. 4th 1303
    , 1325.)
    The only purpose of a section 136.2 protective order is to “ ‘protect
    victims and witnesses in connection with the criminal proceeding
    in which the restraining order is issued in order to allow
    participation without fear of reprisal.’ ” (People v. Ponce (2009)
    
    173 Cal. App. 4th 378
    , 383 (Ponce).) Accordingly, section 136.2
    does not authorize a trial court to impose a postjudgment
    restraining order against a criminal defendant.
    14
    The People rely on Townsel v. Superior Court (1999)
    
    20 Cal. 4th 1
    084 (Townsel) to argue that the order was properly
    issued based on the court’s inherent authority to protect the
    integrity of the judicial process. The People ignore that the court
    in Ponce already determined that Townsel does not support the
    conclusion that a court can issue a postjudgment protective order
    under section 136.2 based on its inherent authority.2 Ponce noted
    that statutes regulating restraining orders were already in place
    and that “courts should use them and should normally refrain
    from exercising their inherent powers to invent alternatives.”
    
    (Ponce, supra
    , 173 Cal.App.4th at p. 384.)
    We agree with the reasoning in Ponce. The existing
    statutory provisions authorizing long-term protective orders set
    forth numerous procedural protections for those subject to them.
    
    (Ponce, supra
    , 173 Cal.App.4th at p. 383.) Consequently, “the
    Legislature intended a ‘narrower scope’ for section 136.2 orders”
    so that they would be limited to prejudgment proceedings. (Ibid.)
    If the duration were not so limited, Ponce reasoned, section 136.2
    restraining orders would “ ‘usurp’ ” the restraining orders
    obtainable under other statutes and “ ‘undermine the numerous
    2
    Townsel held that a court can issue a protective order
    requiring appellate counsel to get approval from the court before
    contacting jurors in a death penalty case almost a decade after
    conviction. 
    (Townsel, supra
    , 20 Cal.4th at p. 1097.) The court in
    Townsel determined that the order was authorized by the court’s
    inherent power to protect the privacy and physical safety of
    jurors, noting the strong public interest in the integrity of our
    jury system. (Id. at pp. 1095, 1097.) Townsel makes no mention
    of section 136.2.
    15
    procedural protections for the restrainee afforded by that
    section.’ ” (Ibid.)
    Here, unlike the court in Townsel, the protective order
    against Mirzakhanyan was not issued to protect the integrity of
    the judicial process; it was intended to protect the victims in this
    case. While it may have been reasonable—even warranted—for
    the People to seek court intervention to protect the victims,
    section 136.2 was not the proper vehicle for obtaining a
    postjudgment restraining order because that statute authorizes
    protective orders only during the pendency of the criminal
    proceedings. The protective order issued against Mirzakhanyan
    therefore “transcended the authorization of section 136.2” and
    must be vacated. (People v. Stone (2004) 
    123 Cal. App. 4th 153
    , 160.)
    IV.   Mirzakhanyan is Entitled to 12 Additional Days of
    Conduct Credit
    At sentencing, the court determined Mirzakhanyan had
    spent 350 days in pre-trial detention and awarded him 350 days
    credit for actual time spent in custody, which included time spent
    at Patton State Hospital. In addition to actual custody credit, a
    defendant may also accrue “conduct credits under . . . section
    4019 for the period of incarceration prior to sentencing.” (People
    v. Kennedy (2012) 
    209 Cal. App. 4th 385
    , 395.) Under section
    4019, a defendant can earn two conduct credits for every two
    actual credits. (People v. Whitaker (2015) 
    238 Cal. App. 4th 1354
    , 1358.) There is, however, one exception relevant here.
    16
    An accused awaiting trial is generally not entitled to
    conduct credit for time spent in a state hospital subject to a
    finding of incompetence. (People v. Waterman (1986) 
    42 Cal. 3d 565
    , 569.) Once competence is restored, however, a defendant is
    entitled to conduct credit for the time spent in a state hospital
    awaiting transfer to the county jail. (People v. Bryant (2009)
    
    174 Cal. App. 4th 175
    , 184.)
    In determining the conduct credit to which Mirzakhanyan
    was entitled, the court subtracted the full 42 days he spent at
    Patton State Hospital from the 350 days actually served and
    awarded him 308 conduct credits. Mirzakhanyan alleges, the
    People concede, and we agree, that the court’s calculation of
    conduct credit was erroneous. Here, of the 42 days
    Mirzakhanyan spent at Patton State Hospital, 12 were spent
    awaiting transfer to the county jail after he was declared
    competent. The court should have deducted only 30 days from
    his conduct credit rather than 42. Accordingly, Mirzakhanyan is
    entitled to a total of 320 days of conduct credit.
    DISPOSITION
    The convictions are conditionally reversed for a limited
    remand with the following instructions:
    If the trial court finds defendant suffers from a qualifying
    mental disorder, does not pose an unreasonable risk of danger to
    public safety, and otherwise meets all the statutory criteria set
    forth in section 1001.36, then the court may grant mental health
    diversion in accordance with the statutory scheme. If defendant
    successfully completes diversion, then the court shall dismiss the
    charges.
    17
    If, however, the trial court determines defendant does not
    meet the criteria under section 1001.36, or if defendant does not
    successfully complete mental health diversion, then his
    convictions and sentence shall be reinstated. In the event
    defendant’s convictions and sentence are reinstated, the trial
    court shall issue an amended abstract of judgment awarding
    Mirzakhanyan additional 12 days of credit consistent with this
    opinion, for a total of 320 days of credit.
    The section 136.2 protective order is vacated.
    The judgment is affirmed in all other respects.
    NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS
    STRATTON, J.
    We concur:
    BIGELOW, P. J.
    WILEY, J.
    18
    

Document Info

Docket Number: B290629A

Filed Date: 11/2/2020

Precedential Status: Non-Precedential

Modified Date: 11/2/2020