People v. Sandher CA1/3

Filed 11/16/23 P. v. Sandher CA1/3 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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, Plaintiff and Respondent, A166128 v. JOGA SINGH SANDHER, (Contra Costa County Defendant and Appellant. Super. Ct. No. 000394-7)

MEMORANDUM OPINION Joga Singh Sandher appeals the denial of a recommendation by the Secretary of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (Secretary) to recall his sentence under former Penal Code section 1170, subdivision (d)(1).1 We affirm. In 2000, Sandher attended a service at the Sikh Center of the San Francisco Bay Area. He asked the center’s president, Ajmer Singh Mahli, for a chance to speak to the congregation, but Mahli said no. Believing he’d been instructed by the “Tenth Guru” to punish Mahli for lying, Sandher retrieved a semiautomatic rifle and ammunition from the trunk of his car and returned

1 We resolve this case by memorandum opinion (Cal. Stds. Jud. Admin.,

§ 8.1) and recite only those facts necessary to resolve the issue before us. Undesignated statutory references are to the Penal Code. Section 1170, subdivision (d)(1) has been modified and renumbered as section 1172.1. (People v. Braggs (2022) 85 Cal.App.5th 809, 817–818.) For clarity, we cite to the current provision. 1

to the center. Kneeling worshippers scattered when he fired a round and exclaimed, “I will kill you all.” He chased after Mahli and shot him in the head, killing him. Sandher then fired into the crowd, striking a worshipper in the leg. Ultimately, worshippers subdued Sandher until police arrived. A jury convicted Sandher of first degree murder and assault with a firearm, and it found true an allegation that he discharged a firearm in committing the murder. The trial court sentenced him to 25 years to life each for the murder and the firearm enhancement — a total of 50 years to life. In March 2020, the Secretary sent a letter to the trial court recommending it recall and resentence Sandher under section 1172.1. In opposition, the district attorney argued the court should not dismiss the firearm enhancement because Sandher posed an “ ‘unreasonable risk of danger to public safety’ ” under section 1170.18, subdivision (c). Sandher supported the Secretary’s recommendation and asked the court to dismiss, strike, or make the enhancement concurrent. At the June 2022 hearing on the Secretary’s recommendation, Dr. Teo Ernst, an expert in forensic psychology, testified for the defense. Ernst opined Sandher had bipolar disorder with psychotic features at the time of the murder, meaning that he experienced manic symptoms nearly every day for at least one week. Symptoms could include hallucinations and delusions. Ernst opined the death of Sandher’s father in 1999 triggered the symptoms. Ernst noted Sandher was experiencing delusions at the time of the murder, claiming the “Tenth Guru” was “speaking to him and instructing him to grab his gun and punish Mr. Mahli,” yelling “ ‘This is for the Guru’ ” during the shooting. Ernst also testified Sandher demonstrated a manic episode in prison between 2005 and 2006.