People v. Edwards CA1/3

Filed 12/15/21 P. v. Edwards CA1/3 Opinion following rehearing NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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 THREE

THE PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent, A159264 v. JAHMAL MARSHALLE EDWARDS, (Alameda County Super. Ct. No. 18CR019853) Defendant and Appellant.

MEMORANDUM OPINION1 Jahmal Marshalle Edwards started a fire in a San Leandro department store to create a distraction as he attempted to steal leather jackets. The fire damaged the store and its merchandise. A jury convicted Edwards of arson (§ 451, subd. (d), count 2) and misdemeanor vandalism (§ 594, subd. (a), count 3), and it found true an allegation that Edwards had a prior arson conviction (§ 451.1, subd. (a)). The trial court found Edwards had a prior arson conviction (§ 451.1, subd. (a)), which constituted a prior strike under the “Three Strikes” law

We resolve this case by memorandum opinion pursuant to California 1

Standards of Judicial Administration, section 8.1, reciting only those facts necessary to resolve the issues raised. Undesignated statutory references are to the Penal Code.

1

(§§ 667, subds. (b)–(i), 1170.12) and a prior serious felony (§ 667, subd. (a)). The court also found Edwards had served a prison term for possession of ammunition by a prohibited person. (§§ 30305, subd. (a)(1), former 667.5, subd. (b).) In 2019, the trial court sentenced Edwards to 17 years in state prison, comprised of the aggravated three-year term on count 2, doubled pursuant to the Three Strikes law, five years for the prior arson conviction enhancement, and five years for the prior serious felony conviction. The court imposed the upper term on count 2 “given the significant number of aggravating factors” — including that Edwards was on probation for arson when he committed the offenses, and that he had engaged in “recidivist behavior” — and the absence of mitigating factors. The court also imposed a mandatory one-year enhancement under former section 667.5, subdivision (b). On count 3, the court imposed a concurrent one-year jail term. The court awarded Edwards 371 days of presentence credit. On October 8, 2021, while Edwards’s appeal was pending, the Governor signed Senate Bill No. 567 (2021–2022 Reg. Sess.) into law. As relevant here, Senate Bill No. 567 limits the trial court’s ability to impose an aggravated term of imprisonment absent the existence of specified circumstances. (§ 1170, subd. (b)(1)–(3), as amended by Stats. 2021, ch. 731, § 1.3; Couzens, Selected Changes to California Sentencing Laws Effective 2022 (Barrister Press 2021) pp. 5, 6 & fn. 2, 10–15 (Couzens).)2 Senate Bill No. 567 also