California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from People v. Delgado, B292821 (Cal. App. 2020):
Section 654, subdivision (a), provides that an act or omission punishable in different ways by different provisions of law shall be punished under the provision that provides for the longest potential term of imprisonment, but not under more than one provision. "Whether a defendant may be subjected to multiple punishment under section 654 requires a two-step inquiry, because the statutory reference to an 'act or omission' may include not only a discrete physical act but also a course of conduct encompassing several acts pursued with a single objective. [Citations.] We first consider if the different crimes were completed by a 'single physical act.' [Citation.] If so, the defendant may not be punished more than once for that act. Only if we conclude that the case involves more than a single acti.e., a course of conductdo we then consider whether that course of conduct reflects a single ' "intent and objective" ' or multiple intents and objectives. [Citations.]" (People v. Corpening (2016) 2 Cal.5th 307, 311.)
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