People v. A.E. CA4/1
- Proceeding
- appeal from a judgment
- Trial court
- Superior Court of San Diego County · No. J244924
- Trial judge
- Richard R. Monroy
- Outcome
- affirmed — Affirmed.
- Area
- delinquency
- Panel
- Michele M. Castillo (author), Joan K. Irion, Julia C. Kelety
Analysis
The trial court found A.E. guilty of robbery and awarded 28 days of predisposition custody credits based on a March 28 booking date, rejecting A.E.'s argument that he was booked on March 27. The Court of Appeal affirmed, holding that the trial court did not improperly delegate its duty to calculate credits and that the record supported the March 28 booking date.
| Ruling reviewed | Standard | The court | The model |
|---|---|---|---|
Trial court's calculation of 28 days of predisposition custody credits based on a March 28 booking date.“We thus conclude A.E. has not met his burden of showing the court erred in calculating his predisposition credits.” | de novo | correct | agree with court The appellate court correctly applied the rule that presentence credits are calculated from the day a person is booked into custody, not the day of arrest. The court reviewed the record, including the probation report and minute orders, and determined that the evidence supported a March 28 booking date, thereby upholding the trial court's calculation. |
Trial court's reliance on the probation report for custody credit calculation.“We conclude the court did not improperly delegate its duty.” | de novo | correct | agree with court The appellate court distinguished the present case from In re John H., noting that the trial court made an informed decision and accepted the recommendations rather than explicitly delegating the calculation to the probation department. This aligns with the principle that the court must calculate the credits but may rely on reports to assist in that determination. |
Authorities
- relied: In re Emilio C. (2004) 116 Cal.App.4th 1058 — A minor is entitled to credit for time spent in custody before the disposition hearing, and the juvenile court has a duty to calculate the number of days earned.
- relied: In re Antwon R. (2001) 87 Cal.App.4th 348 — A minor's predisposition credits are calculated the same way as for adults under Penal Code section 2900.5, and calculation of custody credits may be raised for the first time on appeal in juvenile cases.
- relied: People v. Macklem (2007) 149 Cal.App.4th 674 — Under section 2900.5(a), presentence credits are calculated from the day a person is booked into custody at a detention facility and do not include time spent in police custody prior to booking.
- relied: In re John H. (1992) 3 Cal.App.4th 1109 — A court improperly delegates its duty to calculate predisposition credits if it retracts its own finding and states that the Probation Department or CYA will calculate the final figure.
- relied: In re Jackson (1986) 182 Cal.App.3d 439 — The term 'day' is statutorily defined as the period of time between any midnight and the midnight following, and fractions of a day are deemed a day unless necessary to ascertain the order of occurrences.
- relied: Municipal Improv. Co. v. Thompson (1927) 201 Cal. 629 — The law takes no notice of fractions of a day, and any fraction of a day is deemed a day unless necessary to ascertain the relative order of occurrences on the same day.
The appellate opinion: sound — The opinion is sound because it correctly applies the statutory framework for calculating predisposition credits and distinguishes the trial court's reliance on a probation report from improper delegation. It thoroughly addresses the appellant's arguments regarding the booking date by analyzing the record and applying the legal definition of a 'day' to resolve the ambiguity.
How this analysis was made · dispute it
unusual dispositionThe juvenile court found A.E. committed robbery and, adopting the probation report's March 28, 2023 booking date, awarded him 28 days of predisposition custody credit. On appeal A.E. argued the court improperly delegated the credit calculation to probation and shortchanged him one day because he was booked on March 27; the Court of Appeal rejected both arguments in a memorandum opinion and affirmed.
| Ruling reviewed | Standard | The court | The model |
|---|---|---|---|
The juvenile court did not improperly delegate its duty to calculate predisposition custody credits by relying on and adopting the probation report's calculation.“Here, unlike John H., the court did not make an order delegating the calculation of custody credits to probation, rather it made an informed decision and accepted the recommendations in the probation report.” | unclear | correct | agree with court Emilio C. and John H. forbid a court from ordering probation or CYA to compute credits after the fact; they do not forbid a court from using a probation report as the factual basis for its own award. The court here made the award itself in a stated number of days, so the distinction the Court of Appeal drew is consistent with the cited authority. |
Award of 28 days of predisposition credit based on a March 28 booking date, rejecting the claim to one additional day for March 27.“We thus conclude A.E. has not met his burden of showing the court erred in calculating his predisposition credits.” | unclear | correct | agree with court A.E. conceded credits run from booking, not arrest, so the only question was the booking date. The probation report stated March 28; the case plan showing three credits was prepared for the March 30 hearing (consistent with a March 28 booking); and the petition's '12:00 am March 29' entry, if anything, cuts against him. The fraction-of-a-day discussion is somewhat tangential, but the court correctly held the absence of a booking time does not create ambiguity about the booking date, and the record supports the trial court's figure. |
Authorities
- relied: In re Emilio C. (2004) 116 Cal.App.4th 1058 — A minor is entitled to credit against the maximum term of confinement for predisposition custody, and the juvenile court must itself calculate the days earned and may not delegate that duty.
- relied: In re Antwon R. (2001) 87 Cal.App.4th 348 — Juvenile predisposition credits are calculated like adult credits under Penal Code section 2900.5, and a credit-calculation error may be raised for the first time as the sole issue on appeal in juvenile cases.
- relied: People v. Macklem (2007) 149 Cal.App.4th 674 — Presentence custody credit under section 2900.5 runs from the day of booking into a detention facility and does not include pre-booking police custody.
- relied: In re John H. (1992) 3 Cal.App.4th 1109 — A juvenile court improperly delegates its duty when it retracts its own credit finding and orders probation or CYA to calculate the final figure.
- relied: People v. Municipal Court (Lopez) (1981) 116 Cal.App.3d 456 — The purpose of a probation report is to assist the sentencing court in determining an appropriate disposition.
- relied: Municipal Improv. Co. v. Thompson (1927) 201 Cal. 629 — The law takes no notice of fractions of a day; any fraction of a day is deemed a day unless the relative order of same-day events must be determined.
- relied: In re Jackson (1986) 182 Cal.App.3d 439 — A 'day' is statutorily defined as the period between one midnight and the next, so partial days of custody count as full days.
- relied: People v. Garcia (2002) 97 Cal.App.4th 847 — Appellate courts may dispose of straightforward appeals by memorandum opinion.
The appellate opinion: sound — The opinion answers each of A.E.'s three record-based arguments and the delegation claim with on-point authority, correctly distinguishing John H. and showing that the case plan and petition entries are consistent with, or irrelevant to, a March 28 booking. It does not articulate a standard of review and its fraction-of-a-day discussion is somewhat indirect, but neither affects the correctness of the result.
Opinion
Filed 8/19/24 P. v. A.E. CA4/1 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.
COURT OF APPEAL, FOURTH APPELLATE DISTRICT
DIVISION ONE
STATE OF CALIFORNIA
THE PEOPLE, D083252
Plaintiff and Respondent, v. (Super. Ct. No. J244924)
A.E., Defendant and Appellant.
APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of San Diego County, Richard R. Monroy, Judge. Affirmed. Christopher Love, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant. Rob Bonta, Attorney General, Lance E. Winters, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Charles C. Ragland, Assistant Attorney General, Melissa Mandel and A. Natasha Cortina, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent. MEMORANDUM OPINION A.E. was arrested on March 27, 2023, at around 9:00 p.m. and then booked into custody in juvenile hall. The trial court found A.E. guilty of robbery. At sentencing, the court adopted probation’s recommendations and awarded A.E. 28 days of predisposition custody credits based on a March 28 booking date, as reflected in the probation report. A.E. contends the court erred by miscalculating his custody credits because the court did not include March 27 towards his time in custody. We resolve this matter by memorandum opinion and affirm. (Cal. Stds. Jud. Admin., § 8.1; People v. Garcia (2002) 97 Cal.App.4th 847, 851-854.) “[A] minor is entitled to credit against his or her maximum term of confinement for the time spent in custody before the disposition hearing.” (In re Emilio C. (2004) 116 Cal.App.4th 1058, 1067 (Emilio C.).) A minor’s predisposition credits are calculated the same way as for adults under Penal Code section 2900.5. (In re Antwon R. (2001) 87 Cal.App.4th 348, 352 (Antwon R.).) Under section 2900.5(a), presentence credits are calculated from the day a person is booked into custody at a detention facility and does not include time spent in police custody prior to booking. (People v. Macklem (2007) 149 Cal.App.4th 674, 702.) Calculation of custody credits may be raised for the first time, as the sole issue, on appeal in juvenile cases. (Antwon R., 87 Cal.App.4th at p. 350.) A.E. first argues the trial court improperly delegated its duty to calculate custody credits to the probation department by relying on the probation report. “It is the juvenile court’s duty to calculate the number of days earned, and the court may not delegate that duty.” (Emilio C., 116 Cal.App.4th at p. 1067.) “The purpose of a probation report is to assist the sentencing court in determining an appropriate disposition.” (People v. Municipal Court (Lopez) (1981) 116 Cal.App.3d 456, 459.) In In re John H. (1992) 3 Cal.App.4th 1109, 1111 (John H.), the court improperly delegated its duty 2 to calculate predisposition credits because “the court initially awarded 36 days of credit but then retracted that finding and stated the Probation Department or CYA would calculate the final figure.” Here, unlike John H., the court did not make an order delegating the calculation of custody credits to probation, rather it made an informed decision and accepted the recommendations in the probation report. (See John H., 3 Cal.App.4th at p. 1111.) We conclude the court did not improperly delegate its duty. A.E.’s main argument is that he is entitled to one additional day of credit. He concedes predisposition custody credits begin on the day he was booked into juvenile hall rather than the date of his arrest, but contends there is ambiguity in the record as to the date he was booked. While the court calculated A.E.’s predisposition custody credits based on a March 28 booking date, he claims he was booked on the day of his arrest, March 27. A.E. contends the probation report is ambiguous because it does not state the time he was booked on March 28. But, “[t]he law takes no notice of fractions of a day.” (Municipal Improv. Co. v. Thompson (1927) 201 Cal. 629, 632.) “Any fraction of a day is deemed a day unless in a particular case it is necessary to ascertain the relative order of occurrences on the same day.” (Ibid.) In re Jackson (1986) 182 Cal.App.3d 439, 442 (Jackson), is instructive. Jackson concluded the petitioner had served two full days when he was ordered to serve partial days in jail as part of his sentence. Jackson further concluded that “[t]he term ‘day’ is statutorily defined, not as 24 hours, but as ‘the period of time between any midnight and the midnight following.’” (Jackson, 182 Cal.App.3d at p. 442.) Thus, it matters not that the probation report is devoid of the time that A.E. was booked into custody; it matters only that it states A.E. was booked on March 28.
3 A.E. also points to the probation case plan to support his contention that he was booked into custody on March 27 because the case plan (1) has a date stamp showing it was filed on March 29, and (2) states that he has three days of predisposition credits. A.E. thus concludes that on March 29 he had three predisposition credits, supporting his contention he was booked on March 27. This is not supported by the record because the case plan is dated March 30 and indicates it is for a hearing on March 30. And the court’s minute order from the March 30 detention hearing states the court “has read and considered the report of the Probation Officer dated March 30, 2023, and it is admitted into evidence by reference.” Thus, the record shows the case plan was prepared for the March 30 hearing, and indicates A.E. had three predisposition credits on March 30, meaning he was booked on March 28. Lastly, A.E. points to the petition for wardship, which provides he was booked “at 12:00 am March 29, 2023.” According to A.E., this creates ambiguity in the record as to whether he was booked on March 28 or 29. However, any such ambiguity does not support his contention that he is entitled to an additional day of credit. We thus conclude A.E. has not met his burden of showing the court erred in calculating his predisposition credits. DISPOSITION The judgment is affirmed.
CASTILLO, J.
WE CONCUR:
IRION, Acting P. J.
KELETY, J.
Cites, in this corpus
- People v. MacKlem D046806 · 2007-05-02
- People v. Emilio C. B164437 · 2004-03-11
- People v. Garcia F034831 · 2002-04-17
- People v. Antwon R. E028752 · 2001-02-27
- People v. John H. C011865 · 1992-02-19
- In Re Jackson F006372 · 1986-06-13
- People v. Municipal Court (Lopez) Civ. 19942 · 1981-03-03
- Municipal Improvement Co. v. Thompson Docket No. S.F. 11788. · 1927-07-23