People v. Acosta

Opinion

KING, J.

In this case we hold that a defendant resentenced to prison under Welfare and Institutions Code section 1737 after a commitment to the Youth Authority is not entitled to conduct credit for time spent in Youth Authority facilities. The People appeal from an order granting Samuel Acosta such conduct credit. We reverse as to the granting of that credit.

On October 16, 1980, Acosta pleaded guilty to assault with a deadly weapon (Pen. Code, § 245, subd. (a)) and admitted a great bodily injury allegation (Pen. Code, § 12022.7). The offense occurred on November 18, 1979, when Acosta was 18 years old. The court committed Acosta to the Youth Authority for a maximum period of six years’ confinement.

On February 18, 1983, Acosta was transferred from a Youth Authority facility to the California Training Facility (CTF) at Soledad. He stayed 854 days in Youth Authority facilities. The transfer occurred after his involvement in a “major racial group disturbance.” The Youth Authority determined that he was “too sophisticated, assaultive, and unmotivated, to benefit from Youth Authority programs.” While at CTF Acosta was again involved in a “racial group disturbance.”

On December 29, 1983, the Director of the Youth Authority recommended that the court recall Acosta’s Youth Authority commitment and resentence him under Welfare and Institutions Code section 1737. That statute permits an adult court, upon recommendation of the Youth Authority Di

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rector, to recall a prior Youth Authority commitment by that court and “resentence the person as if he or she had not previously been sentenced. ”

On March 26, 1984, the court sentenced Acosta to state prison for six years, consisting of the middle term of three years for the assault and a three-year enhancement for great bodily injury. The court calculated 1,398 days’ credit for actual time served plus 699 days’ conduct credit, for a total of 2,097 days, leaving Acosta some 3 months left to serve in prison. The conduct credit included full credit for the time Acosta spent in Youth Authority confinement and for his confinement after transfer to CTF.