People v. Thomas CA1/1

Filed 4/29/16 P. v. Thomas CA1/1 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

FIRST APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION ONE

THE PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent, A146007 v. ABDELAZIZ JAMEL THOMAS, (Sonoma County Super. Ct. No. SCR-643689) Defendant and Appellant.

After defendant pleaded no contest to pimping and misdemeanor unlawful sexual intercourse, defendant was sentenced to six years in state prison. We affirm the judgment. FACTS AND PROCEDURE1 On June 10, 2014, a Rohnert Park police officer was dispatched to a residence to investigate a report of human trafficking. The victim, age 16, was transported to the Redwood Children’s Center where she was examined and interviewed. According to the victim, she reconnected with a high school friend, codefendant April T., who repeatedly tried to persuade the victim into helping her and her family in the family business, pimping. At a residence on Charles Street, the victim felt pressured by April T., defendant, and additional individuals to become a prostitute in their family business. Once she arrived at this residence she never left. The victim stated she worked as a

1 Since the present appeal is taken from a no contest plea, we need only concisely recite the facts pertinent to the underlying conviction as necessary to our limited review on appeal. The facts are taken from the felony presentence report.

prostitute under the direction of April T. in April and May 2014. Eventually, April T. persuaded the victim it would be in their best interest if she worked as a prostitute for defendant. Defendant told the victim they would share the money she made from prostitution, but she would receive none for herself. The victim explained defendant transported her throughout California for sexual exploitation, and she believed she received approximately $2,000 for all of the jobs. During her entire stay at the Charles Street residence, she slept in the same room with defendant and had sexual intercourse with him a total of 15 times, and he also sodomized her. In June 2014, the victim contacted her mother and asked to be picked up at the Charles Street residence. However, prior to leaving the residence, defendant contacted her and requested they meet. When the victim met with defendant, he told her if their meeting was a police set- up, he would shoot her in the back. Once the victim returned to her mother’s home, she received multiple threatening phone calls from April T. An information was filed on October 29, 2014 alleging pimping (Pen. Code,2 266h, subd. (b)(1)), forcible sodomy of a minor 14 years of age and older (§ 286, subd. (c)(2)(C)), criminal threats (§ 422, subd. (a)), unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor (§ 261.5, subd. (c)), infliction of corporal injury (§ 273.5, subd. (a)), and furnishing a controlled substance to a minor (Health & Saf., § 11353, subd. (c)). Several months later on April 3, 2015, defendant entered a plea of no contest to one count of pimping and a misdemeanor violation of unlawful sexual intercourse with the understanding he could receive up to six years in state prison, and one year concurrent in county jail on the misdemeanor. The trial court subsequently sentenced defendant to the aggravated term of six years on the felony, and one year concurrent on the misdemeanor. Defendant filed a timely appeal raising “Any errors in sentencing.”