People v. Morales CA5

Filed 5/30/24 P. v. Morales CA5 Reposted with correct filing date

NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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 FIFTH APPELLATE DISTRICT

THE PEOPLE, F086756 Plaintiff and Respondent, (Super. Ct. Nos. 22CR-03932, v. 22CR-05345)

ERIK VILLANUEVA MORALES, OPINION Defendant and Appellant.

THE COURT* APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of Merced County. Carol K. Ash, Judge. Allan E. Junker, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant. Office of the State Attorney General, Sacramento, California, for Plaintiff and Respondent.

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* Before Levy, Acting P. J., Smith, J. and Meehan, J.

Counsel for defendant Erik Villanueva Morales submitted a brief pursuant to People v. Wende (1979) 25 Cal.3d 436 (Wende) asking this court to conduct an independent review of the record on appeal. We then offered defendant the opportunity to present his own brief by raising issues in a letter. Defendant has not responded. Pursuant to Wende, supra, 25 Cal.3d 436 and People v. Kelly (2006) 40 Cal.4th 106, we have reviewed the entire record. Following our Supreme Court’s direction in Kelly, we provide a brief description of the facts and the procedural history of the case. (Kelly, at p. 110.) Finding no arguable error that would result in a disposition more favorable to defendant, we affirm. PROCEDURAL AND FACTUAL SUMMARY On July 21, 2022, a felony complaint (case No. 22CR-03932) was filed charging defendant with committing domestic violence (Pen. Code,1 § 273.5, subd. (a), a felony; count 1), assault by means of using force likely to produce great bodily injury (§ 245, subd. (a)(4), a felony; count 2), interference with a wireless communication device (§ 591.5, a misdemeanor; count 3), and vandalism (§ 594, subd. (a), a misdemeanor; count 4). Counts 1 and 2 also included allegations that could lead to an aggravation of defendant’s sentence if he were to be convicted of those crimes. The allegations of this complaint addressed events that occurred on June 25, 2022. On August 26, 2022, defendant pled not guilty to each count alleged in the complaint. On October 19, 2022, a new felony complaint (case No. 22CR-05345) was filed charging defendant with additional crimes allegedly committed on various dates in September 2022. Specifically, defendant was charged with committing two counts of domestic violence (§ 273.5, subd. (a), a felony; counts 1 and 2), assault with a deadly weapon (§ 245, subd. (a)(1), a felony; count 3), making criminal threats (§ 422, subd. (a), a felony; count 4), recklessly evading a pursuing peace officer (Veh. Code, § 2800.2, a