P. v. Nguyen CA4/1
A jury convicted defendant Cuong Huu Nguyen of one felony count of unlawfully taking or driving a vehicle (Veh. Code, § 10851, subd. (a)), and he admitted to two prison priors for the same offense. The trial court sentenced him to five years' imprisonment and imposed a restitution fine of $1,500. On appeal, Nguyen contends we should reduce his felony conviction to a misdemeanor because he maintains Proposition 47, the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act of 2014 (Proposition 47), reclassified section 10851 as a form of petty theft when the value of the stolen vehicle does not exceed $950, and because the People failed to prove that the value of the vehicle he took exceeded this threshold. He further contends the trial court abused its discretion in denying him a "split sentence," and in imposing a restitution fine of $1,500.
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