People v. Brown CA2/8

Filed 9/21/16 P. v. Brown CA2/8 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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

SECOND APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION EIGHT

THE PEOPLE, B262902

Plaintiff and Respondent, (Los Angeles County Super. Ct. No. MA062393) v.

TRAVON D. BROWN et al.,

Defendants and Appellants.

APPEAL from judgments of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County, Charles A. Chung, Judge. Affirmed as to Brown; affirmed in part, remanded in part as to Halpin. Benjamin Owens, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant Travon D. Brown. William J. Capriola, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant Tyler J. Halpin. Kamala D. Harris, Attorney General, Gerald A. Engler, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Lance E. Winters, Assistant Attorney General, Steven D. Matthews and Ryan M. Smith, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent.

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We affirm Travon D. Brown’s and Tyler J. Halpin’s judgments of conviction. For reasons we shall explain, we remand the case to the trial court to resentence Halpin. FACTS AND PROCEDURE 1. The Crimes During the afternoon of March 11, 2014, Halpin (who was then almost 21) and Brown (who was then almost 30) robbed Garthen Lenon and Michael Griffin at gunpoint. Both defendants were armed. Lenon sold marijuana to defendants prior to the robbery.1 Lenon and Griffin both recognized Halpin from school or extracurricular activities. Defendants took Griffin’s phone and wallet. They took Lenon’s wallet, money, watch, and car keys. After the robbery, Lenon and Griffin chased defendants, and Halpin shot his gun, possibly in their direction. Lenon told officers that Halpin shot in his direction, but at trial he testified that he was not sure whether Halpin pointed at him. Halpin testified that the gun discharged accidentally, but a tape-recorded phone call suggested that he discharged the gun to prevent Lenon and Griffin from obtaining his license plate information. Additionally, Halpin told a deputy sheriff that he was trying to scare the victims when he discharged his firearm. Days after the robberies, when officers located Brown, he had a firearm in his vehicle that was fully loaded and ready to fire. He also was carrying extra ammunition. Halpin testified in his defense. He testified that he was a member of a gang but did not commit crimes on behalf of the gang. Halpin acknowledged that he had a misdemeanor conviction for receiving stolen property and testified that it had been expunged. With respect to the current robbery, Halpin testified that he initially refused to commit the robbery but Brown forced him to participate because he owed Brown money for a marijuana debt. Halpin knew that Brown recently had been released from prison and was a gang member. Halpin testified that he was apprehensive when Brown told him he would “beat” him if he did not participate in the robbery. Halpin testified that his gun