California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from People v. Garcia, A155579 (Cal. App. 2019):
Neither appointed counsel nor defendant has identified any issue for our review. Upon our own independent review of the entire record, we agree none exists. (People v. Wende, supra, 25 Cal.3d 436.) Defendant, represented by competent counsel, received a total prison term of three years, representing the middle term on count two, corporal injury to a spouse ( 273.5, subd. (a)). This sentence, more lenient than the aggravated four-year sentence recommended by the probation department, was lawfully imposed following a contested hearing. In particular, before sentencing defendant, the trial court provided numerous reasons for denying probation and selecting the middle term, including defendant's long history of violent offenses, the increasingly serious nature of his criminal conduct, and his prior unsatisfactory performance on probation. (Cal. Rules of Court, rules 4.414, 4.420, 4.421; 1170, subd. (b).) The court also acknowledged that defendant's long history of substance abuse constituted a mitigating factor. (Cal. Rules of Court, rule 4.423.)
The above passage should not be considered legal advice. Reliable answers to complex legal questions require comprehensive research memos. To learn more visit www.alexi.com.