People v. Bolanos CA4/1

INTRODUCTION

A jury convicted Juan Carlos Bolanos of continuous sexual abuse of his

then 12-year-old daughter (Pen. Code,1 § 288.5, subd. (a); count 1) and three counts of lewd and lascivious acts upon his daughter (§ 288, subd. (a); counts 2−4). The trial court sentenced him to an aggregate term of 16 years in state prison. On appeal, Bolanos contends the trial court erred by failing to instruct the jury on the limited purpose of expert testimony regarding child sexual abuse accommodation syndrome (CSAAS); his attorney provided ineffective assistance of counsel by failing to object to the prosecutor’s mischaracterization of the standard for reasonable doubt in her closing argument; and the court improperly imposed certain fines and fees at sentencing without holding a hearing on his ability to pay. The People concede the instructional error but argue it was harmless given that the jury was properly advised of the limited nature of CSAAS testimony by the expert and by counsel during arguments, and evidence of Bolanos’s guilt was overwhelming. The People also concede prosecutorial error but argue defense counsel’s decision to not object during closing arguments was tactical and,…