People v. Laws CA2/4

Filed 5/17/21 P. v. Laws CA2/4 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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 FOUR

THE PEOPLE, B307911 (Los Angeles County Plaintiff and Respondent, Super. Ct. No. KA008785)

v.

BRIAN KEITH LAWS,

Defendant and Appellant.

APPEAL from an order of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County, Bruce F. Marrs, Judge. Affirmed. Richard B. Lennon, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant. No appearance for Plaintiff and Respondent.

Brian Keith Laws appeals from a summary denial of his second postjudgment petition seeking vacation of his murder conviction and resentencing pursuant to Penal Code section 1170.951 and Senate Bill No. 1437 (2017-2018 Reg. Sess.; SB 1437). Laws contends the trial court erred in determining he was ineligible for resentencing. Finding no error, we affirm.

BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION This is the third time we have considered this case. Our summary of the relevant factual and procedural history is drawn from our 1994 opinion affirming Laws’ conviction and our April 2020 opinion affirming the trial court’s denial of Laws’ previous section 1170.95 petition (identified below). In 1993, a jury convicted Laws of one count each of first-degree murder (§ 187, subd. (a)) and robbery (§ 211) and found true special circumstances and firearm allegations (§§ 190.2, subd. (a)(17)), 12022.5, subd. (a), 1203.06, subd. (a)(1)). Laws was sentenced to life in prison without possibility of parole on the murder conviction, plus four years for the firearm enhancement. Sentencing was stayed as to the robbery conviction, and the firearm enhancement was stricken for purposes of sentencing. We affirmed the judgment in Laws’ direct appeal from the judgment. (People v. Laws (June 30, 1994, B075311 [nonpub. opn.] (Laws I).) In 2019, Laws filed a petition for resentencing under section 1170.95 and then newly enacted SB 1437, which provides that persons