People v. Lawrence CA1/3

Filed 4/29/22 P. v. Lawrence CA1/3 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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, A164030 Plaintiff and Respondent, v. (Del Norte County Super. Ct. No. CRF 21-9159) MICHAEL JEFFREY LAWRENCE, Defendant and Appellant.

Michael Jeffrey Lawrence appeals from a judgment entered after a jury convicted him of several offenses, including possession of a controlled substance while armed with a loaded firearm (Health & Saf. Code, § 11370.1, subd. (a)), undesignated statutory references are to this code). Lawrence’s appointed counsel filed a brief asking this court to review the record to determine whether there are arguable issues. (People v. Wende (1979) 25 Cal.3d 436 (Wende).) Having found none, we affirm. In April 2021, the prosecution charged Lawrence with three offenses arising out of incidents in October 2020 and March 2021: possession of a controlled substance while armed with a loaded firearm (§ 11370.1, subd. (a), count 1); possession of a controlled substance for sale (§ 11378, count 2);

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and misdemeanor driving while privilege suspended or revoked. (Veh. Code, § 14601.1, subd. (a), count 3.) At trial, the prosecution offered the following evidence: On an October 2020 evening, California Highway Patrol Officer Bryan Cooke saw a car with expired registration tags. Cooke stopped the car. Lawrence was in the driver’s seat, and there were boxes of ammunition and drug paraphernalia on the passenger seat. Lawrence’s driver’s license was suspended. Cooke arrested Lawrence, searched the car, and found a useable amount of methamphetamine and a large amount of cash. On an afternoon in March 2021, National Park Service Patrol Officer Robert Romer noticed an illegally parked minivan with expired registration tags. Romer also saw two men, including Lawrence, who was wearing a backpack. Romer approached the two men and asked them to whom the minivan belonged. Lawrence’s companion said the minivan was his. Romer asked to search Lawrence’s backpack. He agreed. In the backpack, Romer found a loaded and operable nine-millimeter handgun with a high-capacity magazine, cash, and a useable amount of methamphetamine. The jury convicted Lawrence of counts 1 and 3, and of misdemeanor possession of methamphetamine (§ 11377, subd. (a)), a lesser included offense of count 2. On November 2, 2021, the trial court suspended imposition of sentence and placed Lawrence on formal probation for two years with various terms and conditions, including that he serve 240 days in jail. The court ordered Lawrence to pay a restitution fine and various court assessments.