People v. Sanchez CA6

Filed 10/16/15 P. v. Sanchez CA6 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

SIXTH APPELLATE DISTRICT

THE PEOPLE, H042011 (Santa Clara County Plaintiff and Respondent, Super. Ct. No. C1493583)

v. CASIMIRO SANCHEZ

Defendant and Appellant.

Pursuant to a negotiated disposition, Casimiro Sanchez pleaded no contest to one felony count of battery (Pen. Code, §§ 242-243, subd. (d))1. In exchange for his no contest plea, Sanchez was promised three years formal probation and that he would receive credit for time served on any county jail sentence On February 13, 2015, on motion of the People, the court reduced the felony battery offense to a misdemeanor. The court suspended imposition of sentence and placed Sanchez on three years formal probation; the court ordered that he serve 161 days in county jail, which the court deemed served. The court imposed various fines, fees, and assessments and granted the People’s motion to dismiss several other charges. The court ordered that Sanchez have only peaceful contact with the victim and that he perform 20 hours of community service. On February 24, 2015, Sanchez filed a notice of appeal based on the sentence or other matters occurring after the plea.

1 All further statutory references are to the Penal Code unless otherwise indicated.

Sanchez’s appointed counsel has filed an opening brief in which no issues are raised. Counsel asks this court to conduct an independent review of the record as required by People v. Wende (1979) 25 Cal.3d 436. Counsel has declared that Sanchez was notified that no issues were being raised by counsel on appeal, and that he could file a supplemental brief with this court. On July 9, 2015, by letter, we notified Sanchez of his right to submit written argument on his own behalf within 30 days. That time has passed and we have not received a response from Sanchez. Facts2 On September 23, 2014, Sanchez and his wife began arguing because he was sending money to his family in Mexico rather than paying his portion of the bills at home.3 Sanchez pushed his wife out of the way, and then pushed her into the living room and onto the couch. Sanchez held down his wife by the neck and used force to push her face into the crevice between the cushions. Sanchez “mounted her” making it difficult for her to breathe. Sanchez’s wife had a pacemaker and had had back surgery so she could not free herself. While holding down his wife, Sanchez told her, “Now you are going to die. This is your last moment.” Sanchez’s wife told officers that she was held down for approximately 30 seconds and that during that time, Sanchez twisted her hands behind her back and bent her fingers backward, which caused her a lot of pain. An officer saw that Sanchez’s wife had a swollen right middle knuckle and she complained of pain to the back of her head and neck area. Based on the foregoing, the Santa Clara County District Attorney filed a felony complaint on September 26, 2014. Initially, Sanchez was charged with one felony count of assault with force likely to produce great bodily injury (§ 245, subd. (a)(4), count 1),