People v. Torres CA4/3

FACTS

Three decades ago, Torres was charged with crimes through two separate criminal complaints. First, he was charged in October 1993 with possession of methamphetamine and marijuana (the 1993 case). Then he was charged in June 1994 with possession of rock cocaine (the 1994 case). Later in June 1994, Torres entered a plea agreement in the 1993 case to plead guilty to one felony violation of Health and Safety Code section 11377, subdivision (a), for possessing a controlled substance (the possession conviction). The trial court accepted his plea and dismissed the remaining charge in the 1993 case as well as the charge in the 1994 case. The court sentenced Torres to serve 121 days in jail and submit to formal probation for three years. In 2016, Assembly Bill No. 813 enacted section 1473.7 to provide a mechanism for vacating certain convictions and sentences. (Stats. 2016, ch. 739, §1.) Relevant here, the statute allows a conviction or sentence to be vacated based on the defendant’s “[in]ability to meaningfully understand, defend against, or knowingly accept the actual or potential adverse immigration consequences of a conviction or sentence.” (§ 1473.7, subd. (a)(1); see Stats.…