People v. Torres CA2/7

INTRODUCTION

A jury convicted Miguel Quintanilla and Jesus Torres of two counts each of attempted premeditated murder and several other crimes, and found true firearm, gang, and other special allegations. Torres was 15 years old at the time of the crimes. Quintanilla was 21 years old. The trial court sentenced both defendants to 80 years to life. We reject Quintanilla’s challenges to his conviction, and conclude Torres’s constitutional challenge to his sentence is moot under People v. Franklin (2016) 63 Cal.4th 261 (Franklin). We remand for the trial court to determine under Franklin whether Quintanilla is entitled to a hearing to present evidence relevant to his future youthful offender parole hearing.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

A. The Crimes On February 10, 2013 Bryan Carmona and an acquaintance he knew only as “Ammo” were smoking a “blunt” (a hollowed-out cigar filled with marijuana) in a hallway near the entrance to an apartment building. The building was in an area claimed by the Compton Varrio Setentas criminal street gang, also known as CV-70, near an area claimed by a rival criminal street gang, Compton Varrio Segundos, also known as CVS. Torres, who was 15…