People v. Shute CA1/2

BACKGROUND

On August 7, 2012, a criminal complaint was filed charging defendant in count one with felony possession of a controlled substance (Health & Saf. Code, § 11377, subd. (a)), and in count three with misdemeanor petty theft (§ 484, subd. (a)).

All further unspecified code sections refer to the Penal Code. 2 A codefendant was charged in count one with felony possession of a controlled substance (Health & Saf. Code, § 11377, subd. (a)), and in count two

1 The facts, as set forth in the probation report, stated that on July 13, 2012, an Asset Protection Agent (the agent) at Wal-Mart detained defendant and his companion. The agent advised the police that defendant “had opened $43.86 worth of baseball cards and placed them in his pocket.” The officer who arrived spoke to defendant and his companion and “recognized objective signs of drug use.” The police found on defendant’s companion a plastic Ziploc bag containing seven pills she claimed were “Xanax” and three small Ziploc bags containing suspected methamphetamine. The officer asked defendant if he had methamphetamine, and defendant provided a small Ziploc bag of methamphetamine, which was in his wallet, and two…