People v. Velasquez CA4/1

Filed 9/18/24 P. v. Velasquez CA4/1 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.

COURT OF APPEAL, FOURTH APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION ONE

STATE OF CALIFORNIA

THE PEOPLE, D083110

Plaintiff and Respondent,

v. (Super. Ct. No. SCE287392)

GABRIELA VELASQUEZ,

Defendant and Appellant.

APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of San Diego County, Aaron H. Katz, Judge. Dismissed. Paul R. Kraus, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant. No appearance for Plaintiff and Respondent. MEMORANDUM OPINION Gabriela Velasquez appeals a judgment extending for one year her civil commitment under Penal Code section 2970, subdivision (b), as an offender with a mental health disorder (OMD) under the Mentally Disordered Offender Act (Pen. Code, § 2960 et seq; [MDOA]). On appeal, Velasquez’s appointed counsel raises no arguable issues but asks us to independently

review the record for reversible error pursuant to People v. Wende (1979) 25 Cal.3d 436 (Wende) and Anders v. California (1967) 386 U.S. 738 (Anders). However, we agree with the reasoning and holding in People v. Taylor (2008) 160 Cal.App.4th 304 (Taylor) that the procedures set forth in Wende and Anders do not apply to an extension of a civil commitment under the MDOA. We resolve this case by memorandum opinion (Cal. Stds. Jud. Admin., § 8.1; People v. Garcia (2002) 97 Cal.App.4th 847, 851-854), and dismiss the appeal. I. In January 2009, Velasquez pleaded guilty to assault by means of force likely to produce great bodily injury. (Pen. Code, former § 245, subd. (a)(1), amended by Stats. 2011, ch. 183, § 1.) The court sentenced her to a three- year term of probation. Following the revocation of her probation in September 2009, the court sentenced Velasquez to three years in state prison. In 2011, Velasquez was committed to the Department of State Hospitals as an OMD pursuant to Penal Code section 2962. Since then, her commitment has been extended nine times. Her most recent extension was set to expire on February 23, 2023. In October 2022, the People filed a petition for extension of Velasquez’s OMD civil commitment for an additional one year pursuant to Penal Code section 2970. The petition alleged Velasquez continued to suffer from a severe mental disorder that was not in remission and could not be kept in remission without treatment, and by reason of this mental disorder she posed a substantial danger of physical harm to others. In support of the petition, the People attached an affidavit from the medical director of a state hospital. The medical director opined Velasquez suffered from a mental disorder that was not in remission, and by way of her mental disorder she presented a substantial danger of physical harm to others.