Court Opinion

ID: 9887065
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-10-06 17:03:35.898534+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:59:22.131696
License: Public Domain

Filed 10/6/23 P. v. Palmer CA4/1
                   NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS
California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or
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                 COURT OF APPEAL, FOURTH APPELLATE DISTRICT

                                                       DIVISION ONE

                                              STATE OF CALIFORNIA

 THE PEOPLE,                                                                  D081426

            Plaintiff and Respondent,

            v.                                                                (Super. Ct. No. SCD292521)

 FREDERICK JOSEPH PALMER,

            Defendant and Appellant.

          APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of San Diego County,
Joan P. Weber, Judge. Affirmed.
          Sally Patrone, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for
Defendant and Appellant.
          Rob Bonta, Attorney General, Lance E. Winters, Chief Assistant
Attorney General, Charles C. Ragland, Assistant Attorney General,
A. Natasha Cortina and Arlyn Escalante, Deputy Attorneys General, for
Plaintiff and Respondent.
                            MEMORANDUM OPINION1

      In August 2021, Frederick Joseph Palmer was ejected from a strip club.
Outside, three club employees told Palmer to leave, stating the establishment
would be closing in five minutes. Angry at being denied reentry, Palmer
punched one of the club’s managers in the face, knocking the man
unconscious to the ground and breaking four teeth.
      Based on this punch, a jury convicted Palmer of assault likely to

produce great bodily injury (Pen. Code2, § 245, subd. (a)(4), count 1) and
battery causing serious bodily injury (§ 243, subd. (d), count 2)). As to count
1, the jury found true the allegation that Palmer personally inflicted great
bodily injury (§ 12022.7. subd. (a)). At a later bench trial, the court found
that Palmer had been convicted in 1993 of aggravated assault causing great
bodily injury (§§ 245, subd. (a)(1), 12022.7), supporting the nickel prior and
prior strike allegations.
      In his sentencing brief, Palmer asked the court to strike the prior strike
and nickel prior. (See § 1385, subd. (a); People v. Superior Court (Romero)
(1996) 13 Cal.4th 497, 529−530.) Noting the underlying conviction was
nearly 30 years old, he claimed his subsequent criminal history was not
indicative of progressive criminality. In addition, Palmer highlighted that he
was unarmed at the time of the incident and cooperated with police who
arrived at the scene. Claiming he had never been to a strip club before and
did not know the rules, he suggested the assault and battery were an attempt

1    This case is appropriate for resolution by memorandum opinion
because it raises “no substantial issues of law or fact.” (Cal. Stds. Jud.
Admin., § 8.1; see People v. Garcia (2002) 97 Cal.App.4th 847.)
2     Further statutory references are to the Penal Code.

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at self-defense upon being forcefully ejected. The People opposed the Romero
motion, citing the serious nature of the unprovoked assault and Palmer’s
extensive criminal history.
      During sentencing, the court commented on the unprovoked, violent
nature of the attack and the jury’s rejection of self-defense before turning to
the Romero motion. “[V]ery mindful that the strike offense was in 1992,” the
court suggested it would have entertained the motion had Palmer’s record
been clean since. Instead, Palmer ultimately served a six year prison term
for that conviction. After release, he had three parole violations and a
conviction for “a pretty serious misdemeanor domestic violence case.” These
were followed by drug convictions with lengthy prison terms and parole
violations. In the court’s view, “[t]here really was not a significant hiatus in
criminal activity.” The court did not solely look to whether Palmer had
committed other violent felonies in the 30 year gap, but considered his entire
criminal history in concluding that Romero relief was not appropriate.
      Pronouncing its sentence, the court dismissed the nickel prior in the
interest of justice. It imposed a three year middle term on count 1, doubled
for the strike. To this six year term, it added a three year term for the great
bodily injury enhancement. The three year middle term on count 2 was
stayed pursuant to section 654.
      Palmer appeals the denial of his Romero motion to strike the prior
strike conviction. Highlighting the remoteness in time and his mistaken
belief in needing to defend himself in this case, he claims he falls outside the
spirit of the Three Strikes law. (See People v. Cluff (2001) 87 Cal.App.4th
991, 1001−1004 [remote convictions should have been stricken where present
offense did not reveal recidivist tendencies].) He compares his drug

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convictions to those discounted in People v. Bishop (1997) 56 Cal.App.4th
1245, 1248.
        We are not persuaded. Whereas Bishop considered whether a trial
court abused its discretion in striking two prior convictions, the question here
is whether the record compelled the court to strike Palmer’s prior conviction.
We review the denial of a Romero motion for abuse of discretion. (People v.
Carmony (2004) 33 Cal.4th 367, 374.) Abuse is found where the decision is
“so irrational or arbitrary that no reasonable person could agree with it.”
(Id. at p. 377.) This occurs, for example, where the trial court was not aware
of its discretion to strike a prior conviction or considered impermissible
factors. (Id. at p. 378.) In determining whether to strike a prior conviction
allegation “in furtherance of justice” (§ 1385, subd. (a)), a trial court must
“consider whether, in light of the nature and circumstances of his present
felonies and prior serious and/or violent felony convictions, the particulars of
his background, character, and prospects, the defendant may be deemed
outside the [Three Strikes law] scheme’s spirit, in whole or in part, and hence
be treated as though he had not previously been convicted of one or more
serious and/or violent felonies.” (People v. Williams (1998) 17 Cal.4th 148,
161.)
        Here, the court was aware of its discretion and considered relevant
factors, including the nature of the current offense and Palmer’s criminal
history. The court could reasonably conclude that Palmer’s 1993 assault
conviction was not too remote given his extensive intervening criminal

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conduct and significant time in prison.3 (See People v. Mendoza (2022) 74
Cal.App.5th 843, 857.) While Palmer recasts his conduct as involving “only
one punch . . . under what mistakenly appeared to be circumstances
justifying self-defense,” the jury was instructed on self-defense and rejected
his claim. No abuse of discretion occurred in denying his motion to strike the
prior strike conviction.

                                DISPOSITION

      The judgment is affirmed.

                                                                      DATO, J.

WE CONCUR:

O’ROURKE, Acting P. J.

KELETY, J.

3     Palmer was sentenced to formal probation in 1993 for a 1992 gang-
related shooting. Probation was revoked, and he served a six year prison
term. On release in 1996, he committed three parole violations. In 1998, he
was convicted of domestic battery and false imprisonment and sentenced to
one year in county jail. He received a nine year prison term in 2001 for
possessing cocaine for sale and giving false information to an officer. In 2014,
two years after his successful discharge from parole, he received another
eight year prison term for drug offenses. The incident in this case happened
two years after his discharge on postrelease community supervision.
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