P. v. Cruz CA2/8
In 2008, Edwin Cruz was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole (LWOP) for a crime he committed when he was 17 years old. In 2015, Cruz was granted a resentencing hearing pursuant to Miller v. Alabama (2012) 567 U.S. 460 (Miller), when he was again sentenced to LWOP. Cruz appealed and challenged the LWOP sentence on Eighth Amendment grounds. During the pendency of this appeal, the Governor signed into law Senate Bill No. 394 (SB 394) and Senate Bill No. 620 (SB 620). SB 394 provides all youth offenders serving LWOP sentences in California a parole suitability hearing after 25 years of incarceration. We find SB 394 renders Cruz’s Miller challenge to his LWOP sentence moot. However, we reverse this case, again, to correct certain sentencing errors. We also remand for correction of the abstract of judgment and to allow the trial court the opportunity to exercise its newly granted discretion under SB 620 to strike or dismiss the firearm enhancements.
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