Wilen

This appeal is by a criminal defendant from a postjudgment order directing him to pay $2,631.04. The amount is small, and the odds of collecting it problematic. But the two issues raised by the appeal are, on the surface, as important as any we can confront: (1) Does a defendant who has pleaded guilty to controlled substance crimes and who is subject of a petition for recovery of hazardous cleanup expenses have a right under Health and Safety Code section 11470.2 to have liability for those expenses decided by a jury? and (2) Does the defendant have a right to be present at the hearing when that liability is decided? We conclude that the plain and unambiguous statutory language compels the conclusion that the answer to each question is “Yes.” The trial court answered otherwise, refusing a timely demand for a jury, and ruling that defendant had no right to be personally present when the amount of cleanup expenses was determined. In short, the trial court erred on both counts. Nevertheless, given the very limited scope, and impersonal nature, of the issue that would have been put before a jury, we conclude the errors do not qualify as prejudicial. We thus…