Majority
We must decide whether this part of Proposition 57 applies retroactively to benefit defendant. In In re Estrada (1965) 63 Cal.2d 740 , 48 Cal.Rptr. 172 , 408 P.2d 948 ( Estrada ), we held that a statute that reduced the punishment for a crime applied retroactively to any case in which the judgment was not final before the statute took effect. In People v. Francis (1969) 71 Cal.2d 66 , 75 Cal.Rptr. 199 , 450 P.2d 591 ( Francis ), we applied Estrada to a statute that merely made a reduced punishment possible. Estrada is not directly on point; Proposition 57 does not reduce the punishment for a crime. But its rationale does apply. The possibility of being treated as a juvenile in juvenile court-where rehabilitation is the goal-rather than being tried and sentenced as an adult can result in dramatically different and more lenient treatment. Therefore, Proposition 57 reduces the possible punishment for a class of persons, namely juveniles. For this reason, Estrada 's inference of retroactivity applies. As nothing in Proposition 57's text or ballot materials rebuts this
2 All further statutory citations are to the Welfare and Institutions Code unless otherwise indicated.
"There is no 'sentence,' per se, in juvenile court. Rather, a judge can impose a wide variety of rehabilitation alternatives after conducting a 'dispositional hearing,' which is equivalent to a sentencing hearing in a criminal court. (§ 725.5; In re Devin J. (1984) 155 Cal.App.3d 1096 , 1100 [ 202 Cal.Rptr. 543 ].) In the more serious cases, a juvenile court can 'commit' a minor to juvenile hall or to the Division of Juvenile Justice (DJJ), formerly known as the California
We agree with Vela that Estrada 's inference of retroactivity applies here. Proposition 57 is an "ameliorative change[ ] to the criminal law" that we infer the legislative body intended "to extend as broadly as possible." ( Conley , supra , 63 Cal.4th at p. 657, 203 Cal.Rptr.3d 622 , 373 P.3d 435 .) Nothing in Proposition 57 itself or the ballot materials rebuts this inference. The parties cite different materials to support the argument that the electorate either did or did not intend a retroactive application. They are inconclusive. Proposition 57 and the ballot materials are silent on the question. But some hints can be gleaned as to electoral intent. One stated purpose of the act is to "[s]top the revolving door of crime by emphasizing rehabilitation, especially for juveniles." (Voter Information Guide, Gen. Elec. (Nov. 8, 2016) text of Prop. 57, p. 141.) Proposition 57 also provides that the "act shall be liberally construed to effectuate its purposes." ( Id ., p. 146.) These provisions are not alone decisive, but they support the conclusion that Estrada 's inference of retroactivity is not rebutted.
After finding that the defendant was entitled to a transfer hearing, the Vela court considered the remedy. It began by noting that the "jury's convictions,
We explained that "the Legislature (or here, the electorate) may choose to modify, limit, or entirely forbid the retroactive application of ameliorative criminal law amendments if it so chooses." ( Conley , supra , 63 Cal.4th at p. 656, 203 Cal.Rptr.3d 622 , 373 P.3d 435 .) Estrada "does not govern when the statute at issue includes a 'saving clause' providing that the amendment should be applied only prospectively." ( Conley , at p. 656, 203 Cal.Rptr.3d 622 , 373 P.3d 435 .) "[U]nlike the statute at issue in Estrada , supra , 63 Cal.2d 740 , 48 Cal.Rptr. 172 , 408 P.2d 948 , the Reform Act is not silent on the question of retroactivity. Rather, the Act expressly addresses the question in [Penal Code] section 1170.126, the sole purpose of which is to extend the benefits of the Act retroactively." ( Id . at p. 657, 203 Cal.Rptr.3d 622 , 373 P.3d 435 .) "[T]he voters adopted a different approach [than that in Estrada ]. They took the extraordinary step of extending
We need not decide how Penal Code section 1170.17 might apply post-Proposition 57, for its continuing existence does not overcome the inference of retroactivity. That section was drafted for a different procedural posture than Proposition 57 and is a poor fit both textually and practically for a
1 We will use the terms "adult court" and "criminal court" interchangeably to refer to the court system for adults and juveniles who are tried as adults, and to distinguish that system from the juvenile court system, where most juvenile matters are handled.
I. PROCEDURAL HISTORY
Because the Court of Appeal reached a similar result, although for different reasons, we affirm the judgment.
O
n June 10, 2016, the Riverside County District Attorney filed an information in adult court charging defendant with kidnapping for rape, oral copulation, and sodomy; forcible oral copulation with a child
II. DISCUSSION
A. Background
"Historically, a child could be tried in criminal court only after a judicial determination, before jeopardy attached, that he or she was unfit to be dealt with under juvenile court law. Since 1975 the procedural requirements for fitness hearings have been established by section 707." ( Juan G. v Superior Court (2012) 209 Cal.App.4th 1480 , 1488, 147 Cal.Rptr.3d 816 .) The general rule used to be that "any individual less than 18 years of age who violates the criminal law comes within the jurisdiction of the juvenile court, which may adjudge such an individual a ward of the court." ( Manduley v. Superior Court (2002) 27 Cal.4th 537 , 548, 117 Cal.Rptr.2d 168 , 41 P.3d 3 , fn. omitted.)
Amendments to former sections 602 and 707 in 1999 and 2000, some by initiative, changed this historical rule. Under the
3 The Court of Appeal issued its opinion, which it believed established the law of the case, after receiving an informal response but without issuing an order to show cause or holding oral argument. ( Lara , supra , 9 Cal.App.5th at pp. 757-773, 215 Cal.Rptr.3d 456 .) The People's petition for review was limited to the merits and did not raise the procedural question. Accordingly, we express no opinion regarding the propriety of this procedure.
We must decide whether this requirement of a transfer hearing before a juvenile can be tried as an adult applies to defendant even though he had already been charged in adult court before Proposition 57 took effect. The question has potentially major consequences for juveniles like defendant. While a person convicted of serious crimes in adult court can be punished by a long prison sentence, juveniles are generally treated quite differently, with rehabilitation as the goal.
The Vela court summarized the procedures in the juvenile court system. "Generally, any person under the age of 18 who is charged with violating a law is considered a 'minor.' (See § 602.) A 'juvenile court' is a separate, civil division of the superior court. (§ 246.) A prosecutor charges a minor with an offense by filing a juvenile petition, rather than a criminal complaint. (See §§ 653.7, 655.) Minors 'admit' or 'deny' an offense, rather than plead 'guilty' or 'not guilty.' (§ 702.3.) There are no 'trials,' per se, in juvenile court, rather there is a 'jurisdictional hearing' presided
4 The hearing to determine whether a juvenile may be treated as an adult used to be called a "fitness hearing." (E.g., Manduley v. Superior Court , supra , 27 Cal.4th at p. 546, 117 Cal.Rptr.2d 168 , 41 P.3d 3 , 27 Cal.4th 887A at p. 546.) However, the current section 707, subdivision (a)(1), as amended by Proposition 57, refers to a "motion to transfer" the juvenile to adult court. Accordingly, like some of the Courts of Appeal, we will call the hearing under the current statute a "transfer hearing."
With this background in mind, we now consider whether defendant properly received the benefit of Proposition 57.
B. Whether Proposition 57 Applies to Defendant
"The Legislature ordinarily makes laws that will apply to events that will occur in the future. Accordingly, there is a presumption that laws apply prospectively rather than retroactively. But this presumption against retroactivity is a canon of statutory interpretation rather than a constitutional mandate. ( Evangelatos v. Superior Court (1988) 44 Cal.3d 1188 , 1224, [ 246 Cal.Rptr. 629 , 753 P.2d 585 ].) Therefore, the Legislature can ordinarily enact laws that apply retroactively, either explicitly or by implication. ( Tapia v. Superior Court (1991) 53 Cal.3d 282 , 311, [ 279 Cal.Rptr. 592 , 807 P.2d 434 ] (dis. opn. of Mosk, J.).) In order to determine if a law is meant to apply retroactively, the role of a court is to determine the intent of the Legislature, or in the case of a ballot measure, the intent of the electorate. ( People v. Conley (2016) 63 Cal.4th 646 , 659, [ 203 Cal.Rptr.3d 622 , 373 P.3d 435 ].)" ( Vela , supra , 11 Cal.App.5th at pp. 72-73, 218 Cal.Rptr.3d 1 , rev.gr.)
In Estrada , supra , 63 Cal.2d 740 , 48 Cal.Rptr. 172 , 408 P.2d 948 , we considered statutes that mitigated the punishment for the crime of escape without force or violence. The statutes were enacted after the petitioner committed the offense but before he was sentenced. We held that the petitioner was "entitled to the ameliorating benefits" of the new statutes. ( Id . at p. 744, 48 Cal.Rptr. 172 , 408 P.2d 948 .) "When the Legislature amends a statute so as to lessen the punishment it has obviously expressly determined that its former penalty was too severe and that a lighter punishment is proper as punishment for the commission of the prohibited act. It is an inevitable inference that the Legislature must have intended that the new statute imposing the new lighter penalty now deemed to be sufficient should apply to every case to which it constitutionally could apply. The amendatory act imposing the lighter punishment can be applied constitutionally to acts committed before its passage provided the judgment convicting the defendant of the act is not final." ( Id . at p. 745, 48 Cal.Rptr. 172 , 408 P.2d 948 .)
In Francis , supra , 71 Cal.2d 66 , 75 Cal.Rptr. 199 , 450 P.2d 591 , the Legislature modified the punishment for possession of marijuana, which had been a straight felony, to permit it to be treated as a misdemeanor. Relying on Estrada , supra , 63 Cal.2d 740 , 48 Cal.Rptr. 172 , 408 P.2d 948 , we held that this statutory change also applied retroactively to persons whose judgments were not yet final. "Here, unlike Estrada , the amendment does not
"Applying the reasoning of Estrada , we find that by its approval of Proposition 57, ... the electorate has 'expressly determined' that the former system of direct filing was 'too severe.' ( Estrada , supra , 63 Cal.2d at p. 745, 48 Cal.Rptr. 172 , 408 P.2d 948 .) Further, we find an 'inevitable inference' that the electorate 'must have intended' that the potential 'ameliorating benefits' of rehabilitation (rather than punishment), which now extend to every eligible minor, must now also 'apply to every case to which it constitutionally could apply.' (
Specifically, the Vela court ordered as follows: "Here, under these circumstances, Vela's conviction and sentence are conditionally reversed and we order the juvenile court to conduct a juvenile transfer hearing. ( § 707.) When conducting the transfer hearing, the juvenile court shall, to the extent possible, treat the matter as though the prosecutor had originally filed a juvenile petition in juvenile court and had then moved to transfer Vela's cause to a court of criminal jurisdiction. ( § 707, subd. (a)(1).) If, after conducting the juvenile transfer hearing, the court determines that it would have transferred Vela to a court of criminal jurisdiction because he is 'not a fit and proper subject to be dealt with under the juvenile court law,' then Vela's convictions and sentence are to be reinstated. (§ 707.1, subd. (a).) On the other hand, if the juvenile court finds that it would not have transferred Vela to a court of criminal jurisdiction, then it shall treat
The courts finding Estrada inapplicable generally believed that a recent decision from this court precluded them from concluding otherwise. ( People v. Brown , supra , 54 Cal.4th 314 , 142 Cal.Rptr.3d 824 , 278 P.3d 1182 ( Brown ).) In Brown , we refused to give retroactive effect to a statute that temporarily increased the rate at which prisoners in local custody could earn conduct credits against their sentences for good behavior. As we explained, "[c]onduct credits encourage prisoners to conform to prison regulations, to refrain from criminal and assaultive conduct, and to participate in work and other rehabilitative activities." ( Id . at p. 317, 142 Cal.Rptr.3d 824 , 278 P.3d 1182 .) We rejected the argument that, under Estrada , the temporary increase in the ability to earn conduct credits applied retroactively. We explained that the statutory change did "not alter the penalty for any crime; a prisoner who earns no conduct credits serves the full sentence originally imposed. Instead of addressing punishment for past criminal conduct, the statute addresses future conduct in a custodial setting by providing increased incentives for good behavior." ( Id . at p. 325, 142 Cal.Rptr.3d 824 , 278 P.3d 1182 .)
We agree with the Vela court's distinction of Brown , supra , 54 Cal.4th 314 , 142 Cal.Rptr.3d 824 , 278 P.3d 1182 . "But under Proposition 57, a transfer hearing conducted by a juvenile court judge does not address future conduct or provide incentives for good behavior as in Brown . Rather, the potential benefit of a juvenile transfer hearing is that it may, in fact, dramatically alter a minor's effective sentence
The People also cite Conley , supra , 63 Cal.4th 646 , 203 Cal.Rptr.3d 622 , 373 P.3d 435 . In that case, we considered the "Three Strikes Reform Act of 2012 (Reform Act or
We agree the appropriate remedy can be somewhat complex. But complexity is inherent when juveniles are to be treated as adults. The procedure Proposition 57 imposes-filing the matter first in juvenile court, requesting and conducting a transfer hearing, then transferring the matter to adult court-is far more complex than the procedure for adults-simply filing the case in adult court. Moreover, the remedy that Penal Code section 1170.17 provides for juveniles charged directly in adult court but convicted only of some lesser charge-discussed in the next paragraph-is rather complex. But we believe remedies like those provided in Vela and Cervantes are readily understandable, and the courts involved can implement them without undue difficulty. The potential complexity in providing juveniles charged directly in adult court with a transfer hearing is no reason to deny the hearing.
Amicus curiae San Diego County District Attorney cites Penal Code section 1170.17, which Proposition 57 left unaffected, to support its argument that the proposition does not apply retroactively. Section 1170.17 provided protection to juveniles who were properly charged directly in adult court but then convicted only of a charge or charges that would not permit or require such direct filing, or possibly not permit treatment as an adult at all. Generally, when that happens, section 1170.17 requires the trial court either to have the juvenile treated as a juvenile (if
WE CONCUR:
CANTIL-SAKAUYE, C.J.
CORRIGAN, J.
LIU, J.
CUÉLLAR, J.
KRUGER, J.
ROBIE, J.[6]
* Associate Justice of the Court of Appeal, Third Appellate District, assigned by the Chief Justice pursuant to article VI, section 6 of the California Constitution.
On November 8, 2016, the electorate passed Proposition 57, and it took effect the next day. ( Cal. Const., art. II, § 10, subd. (a).) On November 16, 2016, defendant requested the matter be transferred to juvenile court for a "fitness hearing" pursuant to Proposition 57. After a hearing, on November 29, 2016, the trial court granted the motion, holding that Proposition 57 applies retroactively to this case. It issued a short stay to permit the People to seek writ review in the Court of Appeal.
Three days later, the People filed the instant writ petition in the Court of Appeal challenging the trial court's order and seeking an additional stay. On March 13, 2017, the Court of Appeal issued an opinion denying the petition. ( People v. Superior Court (Lara) (2017) 9 Cal.App.5th 753 , 215 Cal.Rptr.3d 456 ( Lara ).) It concluded that Proposition 57 does not apply retroactively under the rationale of Estrada , supra , 63 Cal.2d 740 , 48 Cal.Rptr. 172 , 408 P.2d 948 . But it also concluded that, applied prospectively, Proposition 57 entitles defendant to a fitness hearing.
In the meantime, because the trial court stay expired and the Court of Appeal did not issue its own stay, matters continued at the trial court level. The trial court suspended proceedings in the adult court and ordered defendant released from custody unless the People commenced a juvenile court proceeding within 48 hours. The next day, the People filed a petition in juvenile court alleging defendant committed the crimes already charged in adult court and requesting a hearing to transfer the matter back to adult court. The juvenile court held the hearing but denied the People's request to transfer the matter back to adult court. A contested jurisdictional hearing was scheduled in juvenile court for April 20, 2017.
Proposition 57 changed the procedure again, and largely returned California to the historical rule. "Among other provisions, Proposition 57 amended the Welfare and Institutions Code so as to eliminate direct filing by prosecutors. Certain categories of minors ... can still be tried in criminal court, but only after a juvenile court judge conducts a transfer hearing to consider various factors such as the minor's maturity, degree of criminal sophistication, prior delinquent history, and whether the minor can be rehabilitated.
We recently summarized Estrada 's meaning. "The Estrada rule rests on an inference that, in the absence of contrary indications, a legislative body ordinarily intends for ameliorative changes to the criminal law to extend as broadly as possible, distinguishing only as necessary between sentences that are final and sentences that are not." ( People v. Conley , supra , 63 Cal.4th at p. 657, 203 Cal.Rptr.3d 622 , 373 P.3d 435 ( Conley ); see People v. Wright (2006) 40 Cal.4th 81 , 94-95, 51 Cal.Rptr.3d 80 , 146 P.3d 531 [ Estrada 's inference of retroactivity applies to a newly enacted defense].)[5]
Proposition 57's effect is different from the statutory changes in Estrada , supra , 63 Cal.2d 740 , 48 Cal.Rptr. 172 , 408 P.2d 948 , and Francis , supra , 71 Cal.2d 66 , 75 Cal.Rptr. 199 , 450 P.2d 591 . Proposition 57 did not ameliorate the punishment, or possible punishment, for a particular crime; rather, it ameliorated the possible punishment for a class of persons, namely juveniles. But the same inference of retroactivity should apply.
In Vela , supra , 11 Cal.App.5th 68 , 218 Cal.Rptr.3d 1 , review granted, the defendant was charged and tried as an adult for crimes, including murder, committed when he was 16 years old. His case was pending on appeal when Proposition 57 was enacted. The court concluded that Estrada 's rationale applied, and the defendant was entitled to a transfer hearing.
"Here, for a minor accused of a crime, it is a potential 'ameliorating benefit' to have a neutral judge, rather than a district attorney, determine that he or she is unfit for rehabilitation within the juvenile justice system. While a district attorney has an obligation to be objective and impartial, the duty of that position is also to act as a zealous advocate. ( People v. Eubanks (1996) 14 Cal.4th 580 , 590, [ 59 Cal.Rptr.2d 200 , 927 P.2d 310 ].) And the impact of the decision to prosecute a minor in criminal court rather than juvenile court can spell the difference between a 16-year-old minor such as Vela being sentenced to prison for 72 years to life, or a discharge from the DJJ's custody at a maximum of 23 years of age. After the passage of Proposition 57, a
5 We have occasionally referred to Estrada as reflecting a "presumption." (E.g., People v. Conley , supra , 63 Cal.4th at p. 656, 203 Cal.Rptr.3d 622 , 373 P.3d 435 ; People v. Brown (2012) 54 Cal.4th 314 , 324, 142 Cal.Rptr.3d 824 , 278 P.3d 1182 .) We meant this to convey that ordinarily it is reasonable to infer for purposes of statutory construction the Legislature intended a reduction in punishment to apply retroactively.
Vela also cited Francis , supra , 71 Cal.2d 66 , 75 Cal.Rptr. 199 , 450 P.2d 591 . "Here, the electorate has taken away from prosecutors the discretion to directly file cases against minors in criminal courts. As a result-similar to the discretion of a judge to reduce a crime from a felony to a misdemeanor in some cases -a juvenile court judge can now
With one exception, other Courts of Appeal, including the Court of Appeal in this case, have rejected Estrada 's application, although two, including the Court of Appeal in this case, have granted the same relief under the theory that the defendant is entitled to a transfer hearing even applying Proposition 57 prospectively. ( People v. Suarez (2017) 17 Cal.App.5th 1272 , 226 Cal.Rptr.3d 448 [holding, over a dissent, that Estrada does not apply, and the defendant is not entitled to a transfer hearing]; People v. Brewer (2017) 17 Cal.App.5th 471 , 225 Cal.Rptr.3d 623 [holding, over a dissent, that Estrada does not apply, and the defendant is not entitled to a transfer hearing]; People v. Navarra (2017) 16 Cal.App.5th 173 , 223 Cal.Rptr.3d 820 [holding that Estrada does not apply, and the defendant is not entitled to a transfer hearing], review granted January 24, 2018, S245513; People v. Superior Court (Walker) (2017) 12 Cal.App.5th 687 , 220 Cal.Rptr.3d 1 [holding that Estrada does not apply, and the defendant is not entitled to a transfer hearing],
In language the People and some of the Courts of Appeal cite, we "note[d] the limited role Estrada properly plays in our jurisprudence of prospective versus retrospective operation." ( Brown , supra , 54 Cal.4th at p. 324, 142 Cal.Rptr.3d 824 , 278 P.3d 1182 .) We said that " Estrada is today properly understood, not as weakening or modifying the default rule of prospective operation codified in [Penal Code] section 3, but rather as informing the rule's application in a specific context by articulating the reasonable presumption that a legislative act mitigating the punishment for a particular criminal offense is intended to apply to all nonfinal judgments." ( Ibid . ) However, we did not mean to state, and could not have held as binding precedent, that under no other circumstances, no matter how similar to Estrada , and how different from Brown , could Estrada 's inference in favor of retroactivity apply.
One Court of Appeal cited the complexity inherent in providing a transfer hearing to juveniles whose cases are already pending in adult court as another reason to deny such a hearing. ( People v. Superior Court (Walker) , supra , 12 Cal.App.5th at pp. 704-705 & fn. 20, 220 Cal.Rptr.3d 1 , rev.gr.) The People echo that argument
III. CONCLUSION
Additionally, in two respects, Penal Code section 1170.17 is far less favorable to juveniles than Proposition 57. First, under Penal Code section 1170.17, the juvenile is treated as an adult at least until conviction in adult court and, depending on the exact nature of the ultimate conviction, even then would continue to be treated as an adult unless and until the court ordered juvenile treatment; under Proposition 57, the juvenile is initially treated as a juvenile and can be treated as an adult only if and when a court transfers the matter to adult court. Second, under amicus curiae's interpretation of Penal Code section 1170.17, a juvenile who was convicted before Proposition 57 took effect can never benefit from that section. Nothing in that section's continuing existence rebuts Estrada 's inference of retroactivity.
For these reasons, we conclude that defendant properly received the benefit of Proposition 57.
The Court of Appeal erred in rejecting the application of Estrada , supra , 63 Cal.2d 740 , 48 Cal.Rptr. 172 , 408 P.2d 948 , but it reached the correct result. Accordingly, we affirm its judgment, although not its reasoning, and lift the stay we previously imposed.
We also disapprove the Court of Appeal's opinion in this case ( People v. Superior Court (Lara) , supra , 9 Cal.App.5th 753 , 215 Cal.Rptr.3d 456 ), and the opinions in People v. Suarez , supra , 17 Cal.App.5th 1272 , 226 Cal.Rptr.3d 448 ; People v. Brewer , supra , 17 Cal.App.5th 471 , 225 Cal.Rptr.3d 623 ; People v. Navarra , supra , 16 Cal.App.5th 173 , 223 Cal.Rptr.3d 820 , review granted; People v. Superior Court (Walker) , supra , 12 Cal.App.5th 687 , 220 Cal.Rptr.3d 1 , review granted; People v. Marquez , supra , 11 Cal.App.5th 816 , 217 Cal.Rptr.3d 814 , review granted; People v. Mendoza , supra , 10 Cal.App.5th 327 , 216 Cal.Rptr.3d 361 , review granted; and
Cases cited
- In re Estrada 63 Cal.2d 740 p. 24, p. 30, p. 307, p. 397, p. 400, p. 405
- People v. Francis 71 Cal.2d 66 p. 24, p. 307, p. 400, p. 401
- People v. Devin J. 155 Cal.App.3d 1096 at 1100 p. 26
- People v. Marquez 11 Cal.App.5th 816 p. 29, p. 405
- People v. Mendoza 10 Cal.App.5th 327 p. 29, p. 405
- People v. Cervantes 9 Cal.App.5th 569 p. 29, p. 315
- Juan G. v. Superior Court 209 Cal.App.4th 1480 p. 305
- Manduley v. Superior Court 27 Cal.4th 537 p. 305
- People v. Vela 11 Cal.App.5th 68 p. 306, p. 311, p. 313, p. 400
- Evangelatos v. Superior Court 44 Cal.3d 1188 at 1224 p. 307
- Tapia v. Superior Court 53 Cal.3d 282 at 311 p. 307
- People v. Conley 63 Cal.4th 646 at 659 p. 307, p. 312
- People v. Pineda 14 Cal.App.5th 469 p. 311
- People v. Brown 54 Cal.4th 314 p. 311
- People v. Superior Court of Riverside County 9 Cal.App.5th 753 p. 397, p. 405
- People v. Teofilio A. 210 Cal.App.3d 571 at 576 p. 399
- People v. Wright 40 Cal.4th 81 p. 400
- People v. Eubanks 14 Cal.4th 580 at 590 p. 400
- People v. Suarez 17 Cal.App.5th 1272 p. 402, p. 405
- People v. Brewer 17 Cal.App.5th 471 p. 402, p. 405
- People v. Navarra 16 Cal.App.5th 173 p. 402, p. 405
- People v. Superior Court of Riverside Cnty. 12 Cal.App.5th 687 p. 402, p. 404, p. 405