People v. Bowers CA2/3

INTRODUCTION

In 1997, defendant David Denetrix Bowers entered a bank and tried to cash a fraudulent check. He was convicted of check forgery and possession of a check with intent to defraud and sentenced to a third-strike term of 25 years to life. After the electorate passed the Three Strikes Reform Act in 2012 (Proposition 36 or the Reform Act), defendant petitioned for recall of sentence and resentencing. The prosecutor opposed the petition, arguing that defendant was ineligible for relief based on a 1990 kidnapping conviction that qualified as a sexually violent felony under Proposition 36. The trial court agreed and found defendant ineligible by a preponderance of the evidence. Because the prosecution was required to prove defendant’s ineligibility beyond a reasonable doubt, we reversed. On remand, the court again found defendant ineligible—this time beyond a reasonable doubt. On appeal from that order, defendant contends that conclusion is not supported by substantial evidence. We affirm the order.

PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

In 1990, in Contra Costa superior court case No. 901780-7, defendant was charged, together with three codefendants—Eric Billingsly, James Joyner, and Wayne…