P. v. Edwards



Filed 3/9/11 P. v. Edwards CA1/2







NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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

FIRST APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION TWO

THE PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. MARLIN F. EDWARDS, Defendant and Appellant.

A128431 (Solano County Super. Ct. No. VCR204123)

I. INTRODUCTION
Marlin Edwards was convicted of two counts of making criminal threats (Pen. Code, § 422[1]), false imprisonment by violence (§ 236), and two counts of simple assault (§ 240). After allegations that Edwards served seven prior prison terms were found true, he was sentenced to a total term of nine years in state prison.
On appeal, Edwards contends that his sentence violates section 654 because the lower court imposed separate sentences for two offenses that Edwards committed during an indivisible course of criminal conduct. We reject this contention and, therefore, affirm the judgment and sentence.
II. STATEMENT OF FACTS
A. Background
In April 2009,[2] Edwards moved into an apartment with Calveda Daniels and their three-year-old son, C. A few months later, Daniels noticed that Edwards's behavior changed. He would go for days without sleep and then sleep for long periods, and he began to hallucinate. Edwards told Daniels he heard dead people in the walls and began to cut holes in the walls so he could get to them. In July, Edwards began to hit Daniels because she would not admit that strangers had been in the apartment.
B. Events of July 15
On the morning of July 15, Edwards and Daniels were at their apartment with C. and Daniels's nine-year-old nephew, M., who had slept over the night before. Edwards was angry because he thought strangers had been in the apartment while he was asleep.
Edwards told M. he knew men had been in the apartment because he saw their footprints. M. told Edwards that men had been there even though that was not true. He testified at trial that he told this lie because Edwards had a gun in his back pocket and was holding a knife and M. was afraid Edwards would hurt him if he said nobody had been there.
When Edwards questioned Daniels about the strangers, she denied that anyone had been there but Edwards accused her of lying. He told Daniels to come into the bathroom with him so they could talk, but then would not let her leave. He made her take off her clothes and sit in a corner near the tub. He had a gun and a knife and he repeatedly threatened to hurt Daniels who was approximately four months pregnant at the time.[3] Edwards told Daniels that she could not leave the bathroom because she was lying and that if she did not stop lying, he would cut her throat.
After about an hour, Edwards stepped out of the bathroom and called for M. to bring C. to him. M. testified that when he brought C. to the bathroom, Edwards was holding a knife to Daniels's stomach and looked like he was going to stab her. Edwards took the baby and closed the door. He handed C. to Daniels and then threatened them both for several more hours. He pointed the gun at Daniels' head and said he would hurt her if she did not stop lying. He also threatened to hurt C. and make her watch. Daniels testified that Edwards kept her in the bathroom for five hours or more.
Eventually, Edwards allowed Daniels to get dressed and leave the bathroom so that they could go to an appointment with his parole officer. Before they left, he made M. urinate in a cup or plastic bag, telling him he needed it for a test he had to do. ~(RT 86)~ Edwards took M.'s urine with him to the parole office. During the appointment, Daniels stayed outside with the children. Edwards kept the keys to the car and the apartment with him. Daniels testified that she did not tell the parole officer about the bathroom incident because she did not trust the officer.
C. Other Incidents
On July 16, Edwards and Daniels had another argument about strangers being in the apartment. Edwards punched Daniels in the head several times. Daniels testified that her head was swollen for several days after that.
On July 22, Edwards and Daniels had another argument about strangers being in the apartment. When Daniels started to walk away, Edwards grabbed her around the neck and pushed her on the bed. Daniels could not breath and almost lost consciousness. When Daniels could breathe again, she began to scream for help. Edwards pointed a gun at her and told her that if she screamed again, that would be her last scream.
Two days later, while Edwards was asleep, Daniels finally decided to call the police. Edwards had the phone with him, so Daniels waited until 10:00 a.m. when the apartment manager's office opened. She turned on the kitchen faucet so Edwards would not hear her leave, and then took C. and ran to the manager's office.
Edwards was arrested without incident by Vallejo Police Officer Joshua Caitham. Caitham found a gun laying on top of the bed. When he picked it up, he thought it was real. But, upon closer inspection, Caitham realized it was a pellet or BB gun. Caitham also noticed there were holes in the walls in several rooms.
D. Charges, Verdict and Sentence
Edwards was charged by Information with five felony offenses, as follows: count 1 - making criminal threats on July 15, 2009; count 2 - false imprisonment on July 15; count 3 - assault on July 16; count 4 - assault on July 22; count 5 - making criminal threats on July 22. The Information also charged that Edwards had suffered seven prior felony convictions.
A jury found Edwards guilty of two counts of making criminal threats and of false imprisonment. It found him not guilty of the two felony assault charges but convicted him instead of two counts of simple assault. After a bifurcated court trial on the prior conviction allegations, the court found all seven prior allegations were true.
A sentencing hearing was held on March 10, 2010. Edwards was sentenced to the midterm of two years for the July 15 criminal threats (count 1), a concurrent two-year term for the July 15 false imprisonment (count 2), a concurrent two-year term for the July 22 criminal threats (count 5), a concurrent six-month jail term for each of the assaults (count 3 and 4), and consecutive one-year prison terms for each of the seven prior felony convictions.
III. DISCUSSION
Edwards contends that the sentencing court violated section 654 by imposing a concurrent two-year sentence for false imprisonment instead of staying the punishment for that offense.
A. Legal Principles
Section 654 states, in part: â€