California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from The People v. Butler, 102 Cal.Rptr.2d 269, 85 Cal.App.4th 745 (Cal. App. 2000):
"Section 654 applies when there is a course of conduct which violates more than one statute but constitutes an indivisible transaction. [Citation.] The purpose of section 654 is to ensure that a defendant's punishment will be commensurate with his culpability. [Citation.] Whether a course of criminal conduct is a divisible transaction which could be punished under more than one statute within the meaning of section 654 depends on the intent and objective of the actor. [Citation .]" (People v. Saffle (1992) 4 Cal.App.4th 434, 438.)
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