People v. Grandberry CA2/3

Filed 3/26/21 P. v. Grandberry CA2/3 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS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(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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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 THREE

THE PEOPLE, B305238

Plaintiff and Respondent, Los Angeles County Super. Ct. No. A388090-02 v.

ERNEST RONDELL GRANDBERRY,

Defendant and Appellant.

APPEAL from an order of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County, William C. Ryan, Judge. Reversed and remanded.

Emry J. Allen, 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, Steven D. Matthews and Michael J. Wise, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent. _________________________

In 1983 Ernest Rondell Grandberry pleaded guilty to first degree murder as well as two felony sex crimes. He admitted a firearm enhancement. In accordance with Grandberry’s plea agreement with the People, the court sentenced him to 27 years to life in the state prison. In 2019, after the Legislature passed Senate Bill No. 1437 (SB 1437), Grandberry filed a petition for resentencing under Penal Code section 1170.95.1 The trial court denied the petition, stating Grandberry was ineligible for relief because (1) he “acted with a reckless indifference to human life and was a major participant in the [felonies underlying the murder],” and (2) “he, with the intent to kill, aided and abetted the actual killer in the commission of murder in the first degree.” On appeal, the Attorney General agrees with Grandberry that we must return the case to the trial court for an order to show cause and an evidentiary hearing, because—in the Attorney General’s words—“[a]lthough the facts overwhelmingly support the trial court’s conclusion, the court may not actually weigh the facts without issuing an order to show cause and holding a section 1170.95, subdivision (d), hearing.” FACTS AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND 1. The murder, attempted murder, sex crimes, and plea agreement In the wee morning hours of February 16, 1983, Coleen Hawkins and Azell Moore were sitting in Moore’s parked car.2 “[T]hree gun-wielding males” approached. They turned out to be