P. v. Rutherford CA5
After speeding through four stop signs on his motorcycle with a Tuolumne County Sheriff’s Deputy in pursuit, defendant Michael Richard Rutherford was arrested and charged with one felony count of evading an officer with willful or wanton disregard for safety (Veh. Code, § 2800.2, subd. (a)) (count 1), one misdemeanor count of driving on a suspended license (§ 14601.1, subd. (a)) (count 2), and one misdemeanor count of possession of drug paraphernalia (Health & Saf. Code, § 11364, subd. (a)) (count 3). Defendant pled guilty to the two misdemeanor charges and was convicted by jury of the felony evading charge. In a bifurcated proceeding, defendant admitted he suffered a prior felony conviction for battery, inflicting serious bodily injury, in violation of Penal Code section 243, subdivision (d), but disputed that the conviction qualified as a serious felony within the meaning of the Three Strikes law. (Pen. Code, §§ 667, subds. (b)–(i), 1170.12, subds. (a)–(d).)
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