People v. Miles CA1/2

BACKGROUND

I. Procedural Background

The People filed an information charging Miles with stalking, in violation of section 646.9, subdivision (a), and with extortion, in violation of section 520. Miles pleaded not guilty to both counts. Following selection of a jury, a trial began on February 29, 2012. The jury began its deliberations on March 9, 2012. On March 12, 2012, the jury found Miles guilty of the stalking count, but was deadlocked on the extortion count. The court declared a mistrial on the extortion count and later granted the People‟s motion to dismiss that count, pursuant to section 1385. Miles filed a motion for a new trial on the ground of jury misconduct. On May 30, 2012, the court denied the motion for a new trial and sentenced Miles to a three-year prison term and ordered that he serve a split county jail term of 365 days pursuant to section 1170, subdivision (h)(5)(B). The county jail term was deemed served and the court ordered that Miles serve the remainder of his term under the supervision of the probation department. Miles filed a timely notice of appeal.

II. The Evidence Presented at Trial

A. Prosecution Case Calis, who was 74 years old in 2011, had been…