People v. Martinez CA5

INTRODUCTION

Appellant and defendant Enrique Cisneros Martinez was convicted after a court trial of 18 counts involving the sexual molestation of a minor. On appeal, he contends he did not knowingly and intelligently waive his constitutional right to a jury trial on the charged offenses. He has not challenged the sufficiency of the evidence to support those convictions. The People have conceded the error, that his waiver of his right to a jury trial was not knowing and intelligent and agree the matter must be remanded for a new trial. After careful review of the record, we agree that the trial court did not properly advise defendant of his constitutional right to a jury trial, defendant did not give a knowing and intelligent waiver of this right, and the structural error is reversible per se. We thus remand the matter for a new trial.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

On June 22, 2020, an information was filed in the Superior Court of Tulare County charging defendant with committing the following offenses between September 1 and December 1, 2018: counts 1 through 17, commission of lewd acts on a child, J.B., under the age of 14 years, with each offense alleged to have been…