People v. Cardenas CA1/4

I. BACKGROUND

In 2005, following a jury trial, Cardenas and three other defendants were convicted of first degree murder. The jury found true a special circumstance allegation that Cardenas and his codefendants intentionally

All statutory references are to the Penal Code unless otherwise noted.

1 killed the victim while they were active participants in a criminal street gang and that the murder was carried out to further the activities of the criminal street gang (§ 190.2, subd. (a)(22)). At trial, the prosecution advanced three theories of liability for murder: (1) that each defendant was the actual perpetrator; (2) that each defendant was a direct aider and abettor; and (3) that each defendant was an indirect aider and abettor of one of five “target crimes” under the natural and probable consequences doctrine.2 The trial court sentenced Cardenas to 25 years to life in prison for first degree murder and 10 years for the gang enhancement (§ 190.2, subd. (a)(22)). In an unpublished 2009 opinion, this court struck the 10-year enhancement because it was an error to impose it where a 15-year limitation upon parole eligibility under section 186.22, subdivision (b)(5) should have…