Opinion
F077830
11-05-2019
THE PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. DAKOTA JAMES CAMERON, Defendant and Appellant.
Jyoti Malik, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant. Office of the Attorney General, Sacramento, California, for Plaintiff and Respondent.
NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for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 ordered published, except as specified by rule 8.1115(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115. (Super. Ct. No. BF169470A)
OPINION
THE COURT APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of Kern County. Michael E. Dellostritto, Judge. Jyoti Malik, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant. Office of the Attorney General, Sacramento, California, for Plaintiff and Respondent.
Before Smith, Acting P.J., Meehan, J. and Snauffer, J.
-ooOoo-
A jury convicted appellant Dakota James Cameron of transportation for sale of methamphetamine (Health & Saf. Code, § 11379, subd. (a)/counts 1 & 15), possession for sale of methamphetamine (§ 11378/count 2), transportation of psilocybin (§ 11379, subd. (a)/count 3), possession for sale of psilocybin (§ 11378/count 4), transportation of LSD (§ 11352/count 5), possession for sale of LSD (§ 11351/count 6), transportation of oxycodone (§ 11352/count 7), possession for sale of oxycodone (§ 11351/count 8), transportation of cocaine (§ 11352/count 9), possession for sale of cocaine (§ 11351/count 10), possession for sale of alprazolam (Xanax) (§11375, subd. (b)(1)/count 11), possession of metal knuckles (Pen. Code, § 21810/count 12), possession of a wooden baton (Pen. Code, § 22210/count 13), possession for sale of LSD, alprazolam, and/or clonazepam (§ 11351/count 16), and possession for sale of methamphetamine while armed (§ 11370.1, subd. (a)/count 17). The jury also found true an on-bail enhancement (Pen. Code, § 12022.1). Following independent review of the record pursuant to People v. Wende (1979) 25 Cal.3d 436, we affirm.
Further statutory references are to the Health and Safety Code, unless otherwise indicated.
FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND
In July 2017, Samantha M. was homeless and she began using drugs and purchasing them from Cameron, whom she knew as "Bear." Cameron would sell her drugs out of a silver metal briefcase which had the drugs already portioned out. On two occasions, Samantha accompanied Cameron to keep him company when he went on a "drug run," during which he drove around selling drugs out of his vehicle. On August 21, 2017, in the evening, she was with Anna O. and other friends at the Vagabond motel when she left to accompany Cameron on one of those runs in exchange for a reduced price on some drugs she purchased from him. After one transaction, during which Cameron exchanged a package for money, Samantha purchased a beverage at a gas station. She did not recall what happened after that.
The following morning, Cameron dropped Samantha off with Anna and two others at the Vagabond motel. At 6:00 or 7:00 a.m., Anna and the others took Samantha to a park. After Samantha told Anna and the others she may have been sexually assaulted, someone called 911. Eventually Kern County Sheriff's Deputy Amanda Plugge arrived at the park and spoke to everyone before taking them to Anna's house. Samantha was placed on a bed but one of her friends became concerned and she was transported by ambulance to a hospital. Later that day, when Plugge was able to speak with her, Samantha did not remember telling Plugge that the sexual assault occurred a week earlier.
Plugge was informed by Anna and the others that Cameron, whom they knew as "Bear," was the last person Samantha had been with and they provided Plugge with a description of Cameron's SUV. After seeing some texts between Anna and Cameron, some which dealt with previous sales of drugs, Plugge was able to find a photograph of Cameron on Facebook. Plugge went to the Vagabond motel where Anna and the others had been staying but did not find Cameron's SUV there. She drove to a location where three motels were located. At 12:30 p.m., she saw an SUV parked on the wrong side of the driveway of a Motel 6 with a man in the driver's seat whom she recognized from the Facebook picture as Cameron. As she drove up, Shonna R. loaded some bags into the SUV, but she took them out as Plugge drove by. Plugge made a U-turn and noticed the SUV's registration was expired. She turned on her lights and conducted a "quasi traffic stop."
Plugge contacted Shonna, told her to stay there, and contacted Cameron. Plugge told Cameron his registration was expired and not to touch a knife that Plugge saw located between the console and the driver's seat. Plugge asked if there was anything illegal in the vehicle. Cameron replied that he gave people rides often and that not everything in the SUV belonged to him. After Cameron declined Plugge's request to search him, Plugge ordered him out of the vehicle so she could search him anyway. Plugge and another deputy who arrived on the scene then searched Cameron. The other deputy found a pipe and a small amount of methamphetamine on Cameron and Plugge found two sets of brass knuckles in his back pants pockets. The deputies handcuffed Cameron and placed him and Shonna in the back of a patrol vehicle and began searching the SUV.
In a front door panel, they found a vial containing Xanax pills. On the front floorboard, they found a set of three throwing knives. In the center console, they found more glass vials containing pills, a small packet of pills and several small plastic bags that on one side had gold skulls printed on a black background. In the back seat, the deputies found a square silver briefcase like the one Anna and Samantha said Cameron carried. The briefcase contained more vials of Xanax, four pieces of foil containing LSD and substantial quantities of methamphetamine, cocaine, oxycodone, and psilocyn. It also contained a large amount of drug paraphernalia including baggies, a scale, smoking pipes, and slant tipped straws. In the trunk area of the SUV, the deputies found a wooden police baton and a notebook with numbers that appeared to be a ledger.
The search of Cameron and his SUV yielded a total of 31.99 grams of methamphetamine, 2.57 grams of cocaine, 3.1943 grams of GHB or GBL, 149 tablets of oxycodone, 5 tablets of hydrocodone, 4.13 grams of psilocin (psychedelic mushrooms), 20 tablets of diazepam, 28 tablets of alprazolam (Xanax), and four doses of LSD. --------
While he was in the back seat of the patrol vehicle, Cameron agreed to speak with Deputy James Money. Cameron denied the briefcase was his and knowing anything about it or its contents. According to Cameron, earlier that day he had been helping some friends move out of a motel room and they had placed several items in the back of his SUV. He thought when he dropped them off they had taken all their belongings from his vehicle. When asked if he ever sold methamphetamine, Cameron stated that "people are always trading stuff all over town."
Cameron also told Money that he lived with his girlfriend in an apartment. Money asked him if there were any drugs there and Cameron told him he did not think so, that he could go check, and that his girlfriend would probably let him in because she was not aware of his drug use. Deputies subsequently went to the apartment and Cameron's girlfriend allowed them to search it. In a vase in the restroom, they found a small black plastic bag with gold skulls printed on it that matched the bags found in Cameron's SUV.
On November 3, 2017, while out on bail, Cameron drove up in a vehicle to his residence and was detained by deputies while they executed a search warrant and searched him, his vehicle, and his residence. During the search of Cameron and his vehicle, the deputies found eight plastic bags containing methamphetamine varying in weight from 9.2 grams to 23 grams, three foil packets that contained LSD, 37 whole and 2 broken pills of alprazolam (Xanax), 184 whole and 5 broken pills of clonazepam, 1.8773 grams of cocaine, a digital scale and small zip lock baggies. On the floorboard, behind the driver's seat, the deputies found a homemade handgun and a live magazine. In Cameron's garage, the deputies found two bindles of methamphetamine and more small baggies.
On April 4, 2018, the district attorney filed a consolidated information charging appellant with 18 counts, including the 16 of which he was convicted.
On May 24, 2018, the jury rendered its verdict in this matter.
On July 17, 2018, the court sentenced Cameron to an aggregate seven-year prison term: four years (the middle term) on his conviction in count 5 for transportation for sale of LSD; a consecutive one year (one-third the middle term of three years) on his conviction in count 17 for possession of methamphetamine for sale while armed; a two- year on-bail enhancement; concurrent terms on counts 1, 3, 7, 9, 11, 12, and 16; and stayed terms on counts 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, and 15.
On July 18, 2018, Cameron filed a timely appeal.
Cameron's appellate counsel has filed a brief that summarizes the facts, with citations to the record, raises no issues, and asks this court to independently review the record. (People v. Wende, supra, 25 Cal.3d 436.) Cameron has not responded to this court's invitation to submit additional briefing.
Following an independent review of the record, we find that no reasonably arguable factual or legal issues exist.
DISPOSITION
The judgment is affirmed.