People v. Bruhn CA3

DISCUSSION

On appeal, the parties agree Senate Bill No. 567 applies retroactively to this case. Defendant further argues this matter should be remanded for sentencing under the amended statute because some aggravating factors relied on by the trial court were not stipulated to or proven beyond a reasonable doubt. The People, on the other hand, contend remand is unnecessary because the trial court imposed the upper term based on defendant’s criminal history, which he stipulated to at trial. The People also claim any error was harmless because a jury would have found the aggravating circumstances true beyond a reasonable doubt. We agree that Senate Bill No. 567 applies retroactively but find remand unnecessary. I Senate Bill No. 567 Applies Retroactively While this appeal was pending, Senate Bill No. 567 came into effect. It amends Penal Code2 section 1170, subdivision (b), making the middle term of imprisonment the presumptive sentence. (Stats. 2021, ch. 731, § 1.3.) It further states the trial court may impose the upper term only if the facts underlying the aggravating circumstances “have been stipulated to by the defendant, or have been found true beyond a reasonable doubt at…