Opinion ID: 1192452
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Reading Section 969a in Context

Text: (1b), (2b) An examination of the plain meaning of the pertinent terms of section 969a having failed to resolve the dispute, we next consider the context in which these words appear, attempting to harmonize the words of the statute within the overall statutory scheme. ( Lungren v. Deukmejian, supra, 45 Cal.3d at p. 735; Dyna-Med, supra, 43 Cal.3d at p. 1387.) Defendant contends section 1164, subdivision (a) (hereafter section 1164(a)) indicates section 969a should be interpreted to prohibit postverdict amendments, at least in this case. To summarize his argument, defendant claims that, because section 1164(a) states the jury should be discharged following its reaching a verdict on the substantive charges, we may infer the Legislature has prohibited postverdict amendments to the information, because at that time no jury would be available to try any new charges. As we explain, this argument is not well taken. Section 1164(a) states in pertinent part: When the verdict given is receivable by the court, ... [the clerk shall] inquire of [the jury] whether it is their verdict. If any juror disagrees, the fact shall be entered upon the minutes and the jury again sent out; but if no disagreement is expressed, the verdict is complete, and the jury shall, subject to subdivision (b), be discharged from the case.  (Italics added.) Reading the language of section 1164(a) literally, defendant argues that because the prosecution in this case neglected to include any of the prior conviction allegations in the original information, the verdict rendered by the jury was complete, i.e., there was nothing left for the jury to do, and thus section 1164(a) required the trial court to discharge the jury. More importantly, this outcome, he contends, demonstrates the Legislature could not have contemplated that any postverdict amendments to the information would be made, because the jury would already have been discharged. This argument fails to appreciate that section 1164(a) by its terms is subject to subdivision (b), which states in pertinent part: No jury shall be discharged until the court has verified on the record that the jury has either reached a verdict or has formally declared its inability to reach a verdict on all issues before it, including ... the truth of any alleged prior conviction whether in the same proceeding or in a bifurcated proceeding.  (§ 1164, subd. (b), italics added.) By these words, it is clear the Legislature recognized a trial on the question of prior felony convictions could take place after trial on the substantive charges, i.e., in a bifurcated trial. (See People v. Calderon (1994) 9 Cal.4th 69 [36 Cal. Rptr.2d 333, 885 P.2d 83] [trial court has discretion to bifurcate the trial]; People v. Bracamonte (1981) 119 Cal. App.3d 644 [174 Cal. Rptr. 191].) Thus, defendant's supposition the Legislature assumed the jury would be discharged immediately after the verdict is unfounded. [1] An examination of related code sections supports this conclusion. Section 1025 provides prior conviction allegations must be tried by the jury which tries the issue upon the plea of not guilty [for the substantive crimes]. (Italics added.) Similarly, where drug or narcotics offenses are involved, Health and Safety Code section 11370, subdivision (d), likewise requires [t]he existence of any previous conviction ... under this section shall be ... either admitted by the defendant in open court, or found to be true by the jury trying the issue of guilt. ... (Italics added.) Thus, the provision in section 1164, requiring that the jury be discharged following receipt of the verdict, is expressly qualified by the need to retain the jury to decide the truth of prior felony allegations. Considering these statutory provisions together, we conclude the Legislature has not directed that the jury be discharged in all cases following completion of its deliberations on the substantive charges. Defendant's reading of these statutes is premised on the erroneous assumption that section 1164 requires the trial court to discharge the jury prior to entertaining the prosecutor's motion to amend. On the contrary, permitting a postverdict (but predischarge) amendment of the information or indictment to charge prior felony convictions helps implement the Legislature's purpose in adopting section 1164, subdivision (b), which requires the trial court, before discharging the jury, to verif[y] on the record that the jury has reached a verdict on all issues before it. The premise of defendant's argument (that there would be no jury to hear charges added to the information following the verdict) is thus flawed, and we reject his contention section 1164 demonstrates a legislative intent to prohibit postverdict amendments to the information. Another part of the statutory scheme, however, sheds some light on the issue of postverdict amendments. Section 969 1/2 states: Whenever it shall be discovered that a pending complaint to which a plea of guilty has been made under section 859a of this code does not charge all prior felonies of which the defendant has been convicted either in this state or elsewhere, said complaint may be forthwith amended to charge such prior conviction or convictions and such amendments may and shall be made upon order of the court. Close examination of the two statutes reveals they bear striking similarity in wording and phrasing. Accordingly, section 969 1/2 is the obvious parallel statute to section 969a. Both concern amendments to charge additional prior felony convictions; section 969 1/2 addresses the situation where a defendant pleads guilty before a magistrate, whereas section 969a addresses the situation where a defendant pleads not guilty and goes to trial. As related statutes, the two must be construed together. ( Dyna-Med, supra, 43 Cal.3d at p. 1387 [statutes ... relating to the same subject must be harmonized, both internally and with each other, to the extent possible].) (3) A guilty plea is, for most purposes, the legal equivalent of a verdict of guilty reached by a jury. ( People v. Chadd (1981) 28 Cal.3d 739, 748 [170 Cal. Rptr. 798, 621 P.2d 837]; 4 Witkin & Epstein, Cal. Criminal Law, supra, Proceedings Before Trial, § 2139, pp. 2507-2508.) Under defendant's interpretation of section 969a, the People would be prohibited in this case from amending the information to allege his prior convictions because the jury had already returned its verdict. Had defendant pleaded guilty before the magistrate under section 859a, however, the express terms of section 969 1/2 would have permitted the People to amend the information to charge his prior convictions after the guilty plea. Is there any justification for this apparently anomalous result? An obvious motivating force underlying section 969 1/2 is to prevent one accused of a crime from quickly pleading guilty before a magistrate and thereby limiting the amount of time the prosecutor has to investigate, discover, and charge the accused's prior felony convictions. This motivation is not, however, exclusive to the guilty plea situation. One accused of a crime can both waive the preliminary hearing and refuse to waive time for trial. Doing so would also place time restrictions on the prosecutor. We conclude the apparent legislative intent underlying sections 969a and 969 1/2 is sufficiently similar that the two should be construed together, with an eye towards effectuating the Legislature's expressed view that all known prior felony convictions of an accused be pleaded. (§§ 667, subd. (g), 1170.12, subd. (e).) Defendant's interpretation of section 969a, were we to accept it, would be inconsistent with both section 969 1/2 and this expressed legislative intent. (See Amador Valley Joint Union High Sch. Dist. v. State Bd. of Equalization (1978) 22 Cal.3d 208, 245 [149 Cal. Rptr. 239, 583 P.2d 1281] [The literal language of enactments may be disregarded to avoid absurd results ....] (hereafter Amador Valley ).) Given the plain meaning of section 969 1/2, the correctness of defendant's proposed interpretation of section 969a is doubtful.