Can a defendant be punished for multiple criminal offences under section 654 of the California Criminal Code?

Section 654 bars "multiple punishments for conduct that violates more than one criminal statute but which constitutes an indivisible course of conduct." (People v. Vang (2010) 184 Cal.App.4th 912, 915.) Whether multiple offenses were part of an indivisible course of conduct "'depends on the intent and objective

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of the actor. If all of the offenses were incident to one objective, the defendant may be punished for any one of such offenses, but not for more than one.'" (People v. Latimer (1993) 5 Cal.4th 1203, 1208.) The question whether a defendant had a single criminal intent is one of fact. We review the trial court's factual determination for substantial evidence. (People v. Hutchins (2001) 90 Cal.App.4th 1308, 1312.)