People v. Vinck CA4/1

I.

INTRODUCTION

Robert Vinck appeals an order denying his Penal Code section 1172.6 resentencing petition after an evidentiary hearing.1 In 1984, Vinck pleaded guilty to second degree murder in exchange for the dismissal of the other counts against him. In 2019, Vinck filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus, which the trial court construed as a section 1172.6 resentencing petition. Section 1172.6 altered liability for those convicted of felony murder and murder under the natural and probable consequences doctrine and provided such defendants a means to petition the court for resentencing. The trial court denied Vinck’s resentencing petition after finding beyond a reasonable doubt that: (1) Vinck was, at a minimum, a major participant in the underlying felony and acted with reckless indifference to human life, and (2) in addition or alternatively, Vinck had the intent to kill and aided and abetted the actual killer in carrying out the murder. On appeal, Vinck concedes that he was a “major participant” in the crime but contends that, given his youth and intellectual disability, there was insufficient evidence that he acted with the requisite reckless indifference to human…