Correa

In February 2006, police found defendant, a felon, in simultaneous possession of seven firearms. At that time, as now, it was illegal for a felon to possess a firearm. (Pen. Code, 1 former § 12021, subd. (a)(1), now see § 29800, subd. (a)(1), added by Stats. 2010, ch. 711, § 6.) Defendant was convicted of seven separate counts of violating former section 12021, one conviction for each prohibited weapon. That he could be convicted of seven separate crimes on these facts is clear from the statutory scheme. (Former § 12001, subd. (k), now see § 23510.) Whether he could be separately punished for each conviction is the question before us.

As I explain, I agree with the majority that defendant may be separately punished for seven separate crimes. Like the majority, I reach that conclusion because the Legislature specifically amended the Penal Code to provide that *347 each weapon could be the basis of a separate conviction, and it could have had no reason or purpose to make that change had it not intended that defendant could also be punished for each of those separate convictions. (Maj. opn., ante, at pp. 345-346.) Because there is no need to proceed further and disapprove dictum in…

*334 Opinion

After police found defendant Victor Correa hiding in a closet with a cache of guns, he was convicted of seven counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm. (Pen. Code, former § 12021, subd. (a)(1).) 1 We initially limited review to the question whether imposing sentence on more than one of these counts violated section 654’s prohibition against multiple punishment for the same criminal act. We requested supplemental briefing on the question whether section 654 applies to multiple violations of the same criminal statute.

We hold as follows. By its plain language section 654 does not bar multiple punishment for multiple violations of the same criminal statute. Contrary dictum in a footnote to Neal v. State of California (1960) 55 Cal.2d 11, 18 , footnote 1 [ 9 Cal.Rptr. 607 , 357 P.2d 839 ] (Neal), is disapproved. We do not apply this interpretation to defendant because the law has been unsettled in this area. Even so, defendant’s sentence did not violate section 654 because specific statutory authority makes possession of each weapon a separate offense. (Former § 12001, subd. (k).)

I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

In response to a report that someone…

I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND3

In response to a report that someone was taking firearms into a house, Officer Kevin Howland went to the residence of defendant‟s parents. Howland saw defendant get out of a car and walk into the garage. The car had been reported stolen. Other people left the house and were detained, but defendant barricaded himself inside. After firing tear gas into the house, a SWAT team entered. Defendant had hidden in a closet under some stairs and was stuck. Officers had to break open the back wall of the closet to extricate him. Seven rifles and shotguns of varying calibers and gauges were found in the closet with him. Ammunition fitting the weapons was found in the closet, an upstairs

Former section 12001, subdivision (k), is now section 23510. Again, the Law Revision Commission Comments make clear that the provision was carried over “without substantive change.” (Nonsubstantive Reorganization of Deadly Weapon Statutes (June 2009) 38 Cal. Law Revision Com. Rep., supra, at p. 479.) We will refer to the provision by its former designation.

Because of the narrow legal question under review, we have condensed the factual background in the…