Opinion
F087418
06-26-2024
THE PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. JUAN MANUEL AGUILAR LUA, Defendant and Appellant.
Allen G. Weinberg, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant. Office of the State Attorney General, Sacramento, California, for Plaintiff and Respondent.
NOT TO BE PUBLISHED
APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of Madera County No. MCR076641. Dale J. Blea, Judge.
Allen G. Weinberg, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant.
Office of the State Attorney General, Sacramento, California, for Plaintiff and Respondent.
OPINION
THE COURT [*]
STATEMENT OF APPEALABILITY
This appeal is from a final judgment of conviction following a guilty plea. It is authorized by Penal Code section 1237.5.
All statutory references are to the Penal Code unless otherwise stated.
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Aguilar Lua was charged in an information filed on May 11, 2023, with forcible rape of a victim over the age of 14 (§ 261, subd. (a)(2); count 1), and forcible oral copulation with a victim over the age of 14 (§ 287, subd. (c)(2)(C); count 2).
On October 9, 2023, Aguilar Lua pled guilty to count 1 (§ 261, subd. (a)(2)) pursuant to a negotiated disposition in exchange for an agreed upon sentence of the middle term of nine years in state prison. The parties stipulated to the preliminary hearing transcript as the factual basis for the plea.
On November 6, 2023, the trial court sentenced Aguilar Lua to the agreed upon nine years in state prison and imposed various fees and fines, awarded him credit for time spent in custody, ordered no visitation between him and the victim (§ 1202.05), and issued a 10-year criminal protective order. In addition, the trial court ordered lifetime sex offender registration (§ 290).
On January 4, 2024, Aguilar Lua filed a timely notice of appeal. He signed the request for a certificate of probable cause, but did not set forth reasons to issue the certificate, and the trial court neither granted nor denied the request.
STATEMENT OF FACTS
At the preliminary hearing, Madera County Deputy Sheriff, detective Michaela Plummer, testified that on February 24, 2023, she met with the victim, Jane Doe. Jane Doe told her that Aguilar Lua had touched Doe over her clothes, removed her clothes and continued to touch and lick her, and then penetrated her vagina with his finger and penis. Aguilar Lua continued to do this after Doe told him "No" and "Stop."
APPELLATE COURT REVIEW
Aguilar Lua's appointed appellate counsel has filed an opening brief that summarizes the pertinent facts, raises no issues, and requests this court to review the record independently. (People v. Wende (1979) 25 Cal.3d 436 (Wende).) The opening brief also includes the declaration of appellate counsel indicating Aguilar Lua was advised he could file his own brief with this court. By letter on April 17, 2024, we invited Aguilar Lua to submit additional briefing. To date, he has not done so.
Having undertaken an examination of the entire record, we find no evidence of ineffective assistance of counsel or any other arguable error that would result in a disposition more favorable to Aguilar Lua.
DISPOSITION
The judgment is affirmed.
[*] Before Poochigian, Acting P. J., Snauffer, J. and De Santos, J.