People v. Smoot CA3

Filed 8/28/24 P. v. Smoot CA3 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 8.1115(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA THIRD APPELLATE DISTRICT (San Joaquin) ----

THE PEOPLE, C099402

Plaintiff and Respondent, (Super. Ct. No. STKCRFE20230005421) v.

NATHAN MICHAEL SMOOT,

Defendant and Appellant.

Appointed counsel for defendant Nathan Michael Smoot filed an opening brief that sets forth the facts of the case and asks this court to review the record and determine whether there are any arguable issues on appeal. (People v. Wende (1979) 25 Cal.3d 436 (Wende).) Finding no arguable errors that would result in a disposition more favorable to defendant, we will affirm the judgment.

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I. BACKGROUND Early in the morning on May 14, 2023, G. Andrade started the ignition of her car, which was parked along the curb in front of her house, and walked three houses down to get her mail. She passed defendant on her way to the mailbox. As Andrade turned to walk back to her car, she saw defendant get in her car. She screamed out “hey,” but defendant ignored her and drove away. Andrade had not given defendant permission to drive her car, so she called the police to report it stolen; she gave the police a description of the man she saw take her car. Later, law enforcement saw Andrade’s car being driven by defendant. After confirming the car was stolen, the officer followed defendant; a second officer joined and attempted to initiate a traffic stop, but defendant did not stop. Law enforcement continued to pursue defendant who drove at speeds of up to 100 miles per hour and into oncoming traffic. Law enforcement lost sight of defendant for about 30 seconds, then saw defendant had collided with another vehicle after driving the wrong way on an off ramp. Defendant got out of the car and ran from law enforcement. Defendant was, eventually, detained in a truck yard. Concerned defendant dropped something while he ran, law enforcement instituted a search, and the K-9 deputy found a firearm dropped nearby in an open field near the accident site. Defendant was arrested and after he was medically cleared, he was taken to jail. The People charged defendant with numerous felony offenses including: evading a peace officer (Veh. Code, §§ 2800.4, 2800.2, subd. (a)—counts 1 and 2); unlawful vehicle taking/driving, with a prior vehicle theft conviction (Veh. Code, § 10851, subd. (a)—count 5); hit and run (Veh. Code, § 20002, subd. (a)—count 7); and resisting a peace officer (Pen. Code, § 148, subd. (a)(1)—count 8). The People alleged defendant was previously convicted of a strike offense and, as aggravating factors, alleged defendant