People v. Puckett CA2/3

Filed 11/24/20 P. v. Puckett CA2/3

NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS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(a). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115(a).

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

SECOND APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION THREE

THE PEOPLE, B300857

Plaintiff and Respondent, Los Angeles County Super. Ct. No. MA074403 v.

DURRELL ANTHONY PUCKETT,

Defendant and Appellant.

APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County, Daviann L. Mitchell, Judge. Affirmed. Christopher L. Haberman, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant. Xavier Becerra, Attorney General, Lance E. Winters, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Susan Sullivan Pithey, Assistant Attorney General, Scott A. Taryle and Daniel C. Chang, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent.

INTRODUCTION

Defendant Durrell Anthony Puckett pled not guilty by reason of insanity to biting off a corrections officer’s finger. During his sanity trial, he testified that the attack occurred while he was unconscious. The trial court directed a verdict for sanity, which defendant challenges on appeal. Because defendant did not present substantial evidence of a nexus between his mental illness and his unconsciousness, we affirm.

PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

By amended information dated December 20, 2018, defendant was charged with assault by a life prisoner (Pen. Code,1 § 4500; count 1) and aggravated mayhem (§ 205; count 2). The information alleged 11 strike priors (§§ 667, subds. (b)–(j), 1170.12) and one serious-felony prior (§ 667, subd. (a)(1)). Defendant pled no contest and not guilty by reason of insanity to both counts and admitted the allegations. After a jury trial on the issue of sanity at which defendant testified in his own defense, the court granted the prosecution’s motion for a directed verdict of sanity. The court sentenced defendant to 30 years to life—a third-strike term of 25 years to life for count 1 plus five years for the serious-felony prior, to run consecutively. The court stayed count 2 under section 654. Defendant filed a timely notice of appeal.