People v. Hales CA1/5

BACKGROUND

In 1993, appellant pled guilty to two counts of first degree burglary. (§§ 459, 460, subd. (a).)

1 All undesignated section references are to the Penal Code.

1 In 1996, appellant was found guilty of six counts of second degree robbery. (§§ 211, 212.5, subd. (c).) The trial court sentenced appellant under the then-current “Three Strikes” law to three consecutive indeterminate terms of 25 years to life, with an additional consecutive determinate term of 14 years. (Former §§ 667, subd. (e)(2)(A), 1170.12, subd. (c)(2)(A).) Appellant’s direct appeal was not successful. (People v. Hales (Apr. 8, 1998, A077925) [affirming judgment] [nonpub. opn.], review den. Jun. 24, 1998, S070376.) Appellant subsequently filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus on the ground that his sentence was “unauthorized.” This petition was denied by the trial court, Court of Appeal, and the California Supreme Court. In 2013, appellant filed the instant petition pursuant to section 1170.126 seeking modification of his sentence. The trial court denied the petition.

DISCUSSION

As an initial matter, courts of appeal have disagreed as to whether an order denying a petition under section 1170.126…