People v. Alarcon CA2/8

DISCUSSION

As originally enacted, Senate Bill 1437 amended “ ‘the felony murder rule and the natural and probable consequences

3 doctrine, as it relates to murder, to ensure that murder liability is not imposed on a person who is not the actual killer, did not act with the intent to kill, or was not a major participant in the underlying felony who acted with reckless indifference to human life.’ (Stats. 2018, ch. 1015, § 1, subd. (f).)” (People v. Martinez (2019) 31 Cal.App.5th 719, 723.) Senate Bill 1437 also added Penal Code section 1170.95 which set forth a procedure whereby a “person convicted of felony murder or murder under a natural and probable consequences theory” could petition for resentencing relief. (Former § 1170.95, subd. (a).) Senate Bill 775, among other things, amended Penal Code section 1170.95, subdivision (a) to expand the individuals entitled to petition for resentencing. Subdivision (a) now expressly permits individuals convicted of attempted murder under a natural and probable consequences theory to file a petition for resentencing relief. In light of the new legislation, a defendant “is eligible for resentencing relief under section 1170.95 by virtue of…