People v. Wells CA2/7

INTRODUCTION

Stanley Wells, who was convicted in 1978 of first degree felony murder, appeals from the trial court’s order following an evidentiary hearing denying his petition for resentencing under Penal Code section 1172.6 (former section 1170.95).1 Wells argues substantial evidence did not support the court’s ruling he could still be convicted of murder as a major participant in an underlying felony who acted with reckless indifference to human life. We affirm.

FACTUAL BACKGROUND2

On September 6, 1977, around 6:00 p.m., Toni McDowell spoke with her 90-year-old mother, Gladys Ott, over the phone. Around 5:00 p.m. the next day, McDowell went to Ott’s one- bedroom apartment. McDowell used a key to unlock the front door. When she went inside, the apartment was in “shambles.” McDowell found Ott lying naked on the bed in the bedroom. Ott did not have a pulse and appeared to be dead. The left side of Ott’s face was “completely black.” McDowell noticed that items, including a television and a toaster, were missing from the apartment.

Effective June 30, 2022, section 1170.95 was renumbered to section 1172.6 with no change in text. (Stats. 2022, ch. 58, § 10.) All undesignated…