Filed 3/13/18 P. v. Williams CA4/3





NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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

FOURTH APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION THREE


THE PEOPLE,

Plaintiff and Respondent,

v.

TODD MARTIN WILLIAMS,

Defendant and Appellant.


G054195

(Super. Ct. No. 09CF0996)

O P I N I O N

Appeal from a judgment of the Superior Court of Orange County, Jonathan S. Fish, Judge. Affirmed.
Law Office of Zulu Ali and Zulu Ali for Defendant and Appellant.
Xavier Becerra, Attorney General, Gerald A. Engler, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Julie L. Garland, Assistant Attorney General, Barry Carlton and Sabrina Y. Lane-Erwin, Deputy Attorneys General for Plaintiff and Respondent.

* * *

Defendant, Todd Williams, appeals from a judgment of conviction following a plea of guilty. He contends he did not knowingly and intelligently waive his constitutional rights before pleading guilty to driving under the influence of drugs (Veh. Code, § 23152, subd. (a)) with three prior convictions. We affirm.

FACTS

After a long explanation by the court of the consequences of pleading guilty, the hearing ensued as follows:
“THE COURT: So does that sound like what’s going to happen to you if you plead guilty today, sir?
“THE DEFENDANT: Yes.
“THE COURT: Okay. Have you had enough time to talk with your lawyer to talk about this case?
“THE DEFENDANT: Yes.
“THE COURT: Okay. And there’s two cases we’re going to deal with. One is 09CF0996 [the instant case]”
The court also explained the prior case.
“THE COURT: Have I — what I just explained to you, is that your understanding, your clear understanding of what’s going to happen if you plead guilty to both of these cases and what might happen if you don’t finish Salvation Army?
“THE DEFENDANT: Yes.
“THE COURT: Okay. Did you go over these forms carefully with [your attorney]?
“THE DEFENDANT: Yes.
“THE COURT: Any questions at all?
“THE DEFENDANT: No.
“THE COURT: On each of them, I see that there’s initials, looks like a “TW.” And then there’s a signature throughout the two sets of forms. Are those yours, Mr. Williams?
“THE DEFENDANT: Yes.
“THE COURT: Did you put the initials and the signatures down there?
“THE DEFENDANT: Yes.
“THE COURT: And did you do that because you read and understood those areas where you signed and initialed?
“THE DEFENDANT: Yes.
“THE COURT: Okay. So you didn’t sign anything or initial anything that you didn’t understand. Is that fair to say?
“THE DEFENDANT: For the most part. [Bold and italics added.]
“THE COURT: Okay. I want to make sure you do. Is there any particular part of this plea agreement you don’t understand or you’re uncomfortable with? “There’s no — you don’t have to rush into this, and there’s no — you do not have to plead guilty. I want to make sure you understand everything.
“Is there any area that [your attorney] or I could explain to you?
“THE DEFENDANT: It’s a plea called People vs. West.
“THE COURT: Okay. People vs. West [Court explains case]. Does that make sense?
“THE DEFENDANT: Yes.
“THE COURT: It’s still a plea of guilt, though. And it’s just the same as pleading guilty in terms of [what] we’re doing here. Do you understand that?
“THE DEFENDANT: Yes.
“THE COURT: Okay. Anything else you want or need to talk about?
“THE DEFENDANT: Just like to state for the record the — a motion that I wanted to file is a Trombetta motion, the Trombetta motion, so we have a record.
“THE COURT: Okay. Well, you still have the right to file that motion. A Trombetta motion means that the government is responsible for loss of evidence and has jeopardized your case. Is that what you’re talking about?
“THE DEFENDANT: Exactly.
“THE COURT: Okay. And so once you plead guilty, you can’t file a Trombetta motion. That train will have left. Do you understand that?
“THE DEFENDANT: Yes.
“THE COURT: So you don’t have to plead guilty here. If you’re more comfortable filing a Trombetta motion or you feel like you want to do that, you absolutely have a right to do that. Nobody’s pushing this on you.
“So you have to make a — I’m not trying to talk you into one decision or another. I just want to make sure you understand if you plead guilty, that that motion is off the table.
“Do you understand?
“THE DEFENDANT: Yes.
“THE COURT: Okay. Do you still want to go forward with the guilty plea?
“THE DEFENDANT: Yes.
“THE COURT: All right . . . . Have any promises been made to you that [are] not contained in either of these forms?
“THE DEFENDANT: No.
“THE COURT: Have any threats been made to you to entice you to plead guilty other than those in these forms?
“THE DEFENDANT: No.
“THE COURT: Now, to plead guilty, you’re going to be waiving some rights, and I want to go over those. The rights are the same in both cases. There’s one additional right that you have in your felony case I’ll talk about in a minute.
“You have the right to a speedy and public jury trial. So at any stage, if you don’t want to waive time, you have a right to a trial within a statutorily timely manner. And it’s in a public place in a public courthouse. You’ll be waiving that right if you plead guilty.
“Do you understand that?
“THE DEFENDANT: Yes.
“THE COURT: At those trials or at any hearing associated with the trials, you have an absolute right to testify to tell your side of the story or an absolute right to remain silent.
“Do you understand that?
“THE DEFENDANT: Yes.
“THE COURT: You have a right to confront and cross-examine any witnesses that are called upon to testify against you.
“Do you understand that?
“THE DEFENDANT: Yes.
“THE COURT: And you have the right to present evidence. What that means is you can — your attorney — you or your attorney could use the court’s powers to subpoena witnesses or other evidence that you want to have come into court at no charge to you.
“Do you understand that?
“THE DEFENDANT: Yes.
“THE COURT: Then there’s one extra right in the felony case. Before you could be even brought to trial, you have a right to a preliminary hearing where the People have to prove up the basic elements of the case before you could even be held to answer for trial.
“And at that hearing, you have the right to confront and cross-examine witnesses and testify or remain silent and to use the subpoena powers.
“Do you understand all those rights I just explained to you?
“THE DEFENDANT: Yes.
“THE COURT: You also at any time, if you can’t afford an attorney, one will always be appointed for you free of charge.
“Do you understand that as well?
“THE DEFENDANT: Yes.
“THE COURT: Do you want to waive those rights and plead guilty today?
“THE DEFENDANT: Yes.
“THE COURT: Now, are you entering this plea agreement freely and voluntarily? Nobody’s making any promises or any threats; is that correct?
“THE DEFENDANT: No.
“THE COURT: Maybe we crossed paths there. Is anybody threatening you on this case to get you to plead guilty?
“THE DEFENDANT: No.
“THE COURT: Promising you anything other than what’s in the documents?
“THE DEFENDANT: No.
“THE COURT: If you’re not a citizen of the United States, it is possible that pleading guilty to the misdemeanor or the felony may have immigration consequences. And those immigration consequences are being deported from the United States, being excluded from admission into the country, and being denied naturalization. “Do you understand that?
“THE DEFENDANT: Yes.
“THE COURT: Okay. If there is any grant of probation or parole that’s not addressed in this plea agreement, pleading guilty to these offenses may have an adverse effect on those grants of probation or parole.
“Do you understand that?
“In other words, if you’re on parole in some other cases, let’s say we didn’t know that you’re on probation [or] driving on a suspended license and you pled guilty to this, that could be considered a violation of probation.
“THE DEFENDANT: Yes.
“THE COURT: Okay. So we’ve addressed all your cases. If there’s something you forgot, then these could have an adverse effect or a bad effect on those other cases.
“Do you understand that?
“THE DEFENDANT: Yes.”
“THE COURT: And on [the instant case], it’s been alleged that you were driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs or both with three prior convictions.
“Do you admit that or deny that?
“THE DEFENDANT: I admit.
“THE COURT: It’s also alleged that at the time that crime occurred, the most recent one that we talked about, that you were out on bail on another felony.
“Do you admit that?
“THE DEFENDANT: Admit that.

DISCUSSION

Defendant now contends the bold, italicized words above (“for the most part”) demonstrate defendant “did not understand what he was signing” and that “the court should have made further inquiry or advised [defendant] to speak with his counsel before proceeding” because “[c]learly, the [defendant] did not understand the nature of the charge or consequences of his actions by entering a plea of guilty.” Nonsense.
“Several federal constitutional rights are involved in a waiver that takes place when a plea of guilty is entered in a state criminal trial. First, is the privilege against compulsory self-incrimination guaranteed by the Fifth Amendment and applicable to the States by reason of the Fourteenth. [Citation.] Second, is the right to trial by jury. [Citation.] Third, is the right to confront one’s accusers.” (Boykin v. Alabama (1969) 395 U.S. 238, 243.) “The record must affirmatively demonstrate that the plea was voluntary and intelligent under the totality of the circumstances.” (People v. Howard (1992) 1 Cal.4th 1132, 1178.)
Here it is not even close. The court’s efforts in securing a knowing and intelligent waiver from defendant before accepting his guilty plea reflect a judicial gold standard. Defendant’s appeal completely lacks merit. It approaches frivolous — for the most part.

DISPOSITION

The judgment is affirmed.



IKOLA, J.

WE CONCUR:



MOORE, ACTING P. J.



FYBEL, J.