People v. Burns CA2/2

FACTS

Appellant was charged with multiple crimes, including murder (§ 187) and assault with a firearm (§ 245, subd. (a)(2)), in an amended information containing various enhancement allegations.2 On May 3, 2012, appellant pleaded no contest to voluntary manslaughter (§ 192, subd. (a)) and assault with a firearm. He admitted gang allegations (§ 186.22, subd. (b)(1)(C)) and gun allegations (§ 12022.5, subd. (a)). The trial court sentenced him to an aggregate determinate prison term of 25 years, and an additional concurrent prison term of three years. On April 29, 2019, appellant filed his petition for resentencing. In subsequent briefing, he argued that section

All further statutory references are to the Penal Code unless otherwise indicated.

In the original petition, he was charged with committing murder with a codefendant.

2 1170.95 is ambiguous and should be construed as applying to all homicides, including manslaughter. Also, he argued that it violates equal protection to treat defendants convicted of manslaughter more harshly than defendants convicted of murder by making only the second group eligible for section 1170.95 relief. At the prima facie review hearing…