P. v. Acosta
Defendant and fellow gang members accosted a group of people, robbed them, and stole their car. When officers later found Defendant in the stolen car, he led them on a high speed chase before being apprehended.
A jury convicted defendant of carjacking, five counts of robbery, participating in a criminal street gang, resisting or obstructing a peace officer, vehicle theft, and evading an officer. The trial court found a prior conviction to be true, found Defendant had violated probation in another case, and sentenced defendant to an aggregate prison term of 34 years 4 months.
On appeal, Defendant contends that the trial court (1) erred in giving a pinpoint instruction on carjacking, (2) mistakenly believed it could consider only those mitigating factors expressly delineated in the California Rules of Court, and (3) violated principles enunciated in Blakely v. Washington when imposing the sentence. Court rejects defendant’s first and third claims, but concluded that the court erred in restricting its consideration of mitigating factors. Court therefore remands for resentencing.
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