People v. Defelice CA2/6

FACTS

On remand from our prior decision, the trial court held a short presentencing hearing in August 2022 and asked, “I am gathering that [Defelice] will be waiving his appearance and we’ll continue [the section] 977 [hearing]. Or do we need to have him brought down?” Defelice’s counsel said: “No, Your Honor. He can stay in state prison. It’s a relatively simple issue. He has a rather lengthy sentence.”

2 The court said, “I understand. I read the opinion. I just want to make sure that we all understand he’s waiving his appearance.” The prosecutor: “Thank you.” Defense counsel: “Understood, Your Honor.” The trial court held another pre-resentencing hearing on October 4, 2022. Again Defelice was not present. The court asked defense counsel about his absence. Counsel responded, “He’s not going to be transported.” The court scheduled a resentencing hearing for October 25, 2022. At the October 25th resentencing hearing, Defelice was not present. Defense counsel advised the trial court that Defelice “is in state prison.” The trial court ruled that the scope of resentencing would be limited to the enhancement. The court said, “So the court will find that factors in aggravation have…