Baker

*715 A jury convicted Jeffrey A. Baker of one count of oral copulation of his six-year-old niece in violation of Penal Code section 288.7, subdivision (b) and two counts of lewd acts in violation of Penal Code section 288, subdivision (a). 1 At sentencing, the trial court imposed the mandatory 15-years-to-life prison sentence on the oral copulation count but expressed its *716 view that the sentence was "absolutely disproportionate to the crime that was committed" and encouraged Baker to appeal on Eighth Amendment grounds. ( U.S. Const., 8th Amend.) Baker argues that the trial court misunderstood its sentencing authority to not impose an unconstitutional sentence. He further contends that the indeterminate sentence imposed was cruel and/or unusual in violation of the federal and state constitutions and that his counsel's failure to object on this basis amounted to ineffective assistance of counsel.

As the People concede, the trial court had the power to decide whether the mandatory prison term in this case was an unconstitutional sentence. But even if the trial court misunderstood the scope of its authority, a remand for resentencing is unnecessary because the indeterminate…