People v. Sanders CA1/2

Filed 7/28/16 P. v. Sanders CA1/2 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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 TWO

THE PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent, A146346 v. DAVID ARON SANDERS, (Sonoma County Super. Ct. No. SCR-641240) Defendant and Appellant.

Defendant David Aron Sanders appeals from the court’s order revoking his probation and imposing a three-year prison sentence. Defendant was previously convicted after a jury trial for the unlawful possession of marijuana with the intent to sell (Health & Saf. Code, § 11359), allowing a place for preparing or storing a controlled substance (id., § 11366.5, subd. (a)), and the unlawful transportation of marijuana (id., § 11360, subd. (a)).1 Defendant’s court-appointed counsel has filed a brief that does not raise any legal issues. He requests this court independently review the record pursuant to People v. Wende (1979) 25 Cal.3d 436 (Wende). Defendant was informed of his right to file a supplemental brief and has not done so. Upon our independent review of the record pursuant to Wende, we conclude there are no arguable appellate issues for our consideration and affirm the trial court’s order.

1 In an unpublished opinion issued on July 21, 2016, in case number A144585, we affirmed defendant’s convictions. 1

BACKGROUND After defendant was convicted of the subject crimes, the court placed him on probation for 48 months, with one condition being his completion of a residential drug rehabilitation program. On February 10, 2015, the Sonoma County Department of Health Services reported to the court that defendant, having “admitted to having a substance use disorder and . . . express[ing] a desire for rehabilitation,” was accepted for participation in the Treatment Alternatives for Safer Communities (TASC) program and placed on a wait list to begin a six-month residential treatment program. On June 8, 2015, he was released from custody and transported to TASC to begin this program. However, on June 26, 2015, he left TASC prior to completing the program and without approval. The court revoked his probation and issued a warrant for his arrest. Defendant was arrested on July 16, 2015, apparently when he turned himself in at the local jail. At an August 27, 2015 probation revocation hearing, defendant told the court he left TASC to take his mother to the hospital, and that he turned himself in the day after she got out of the hospital. He said he tried to convince TASC to let him go, but “it wasn’t going to happen, so I just felt that’s what I had to do.” The prosecution, however, contested these facts. It asserted defendant left the program after only two and a half weeks, did not notify anyone that he left, was arrested for a battery and then was back in custody for his violation of probation later. In light of this dispute, the court put the matter over for sentencing and asked the probation department to prepare a report. The probation department subsequently reported that after defendant left TASC, but before his arrest, he participated in two podcasts: “[D]efendant advised that he was disillusioned with the United States government and the circumstances that led him to be in residential treatment. While in treatment, he prayed about whether or not he should leave the program and asked that ‘God show him in sign.’ He was given money to purchase a plane ticket and took this as a sign to leave the program. He was planning on going to ‘the EU.’ He stated he had a European passport and he would be able to work in Europe, having a successful life while remaining free from the jurisdiction of the United States. During the podcast, the facilitator brought up the defendant’s family and the fact