Opinion
B312517
09-27-2021
THE PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. JAMES EDWARD POPEJOY, Defendant and Appellant.
Richard L. Fitzer, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant. No appearance for Plaintiff and Respondent.
NOT TO BE PUBLISHED
APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County, No. PA095699 David Walgren, Judge. Affirmed.
Richard L. Fitzer, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant.
No appearance for Plaintiff and Respondent.
PERLUSS, P. J.
Pursuant to a negotiated agreement following the denial of his motion to suppress evidence, James Edward Popejoy pleaded no contest to the unlawful possession of ammunition (Pen. Code, § 30305, subd. (a)(1)); imposition of sentence was suspended; and Popejoy was placed on felony probation for two years. Popejoy appealed. No arguable issues have been identified following review of the record by Popejoy's appointed appellate counsel or our own independent review. We affirm.
FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND
Los Angeles County Deputy Sheriff Steve Erickson conducted a traffic stop of Popejoy on the evening of December 16, 2020 after noticing the vehicle driven by Popejoy had a malfunctioning front headlight and illegally tinted front windows. Deputy Erickson asked Popejoy if there was anything illegal on his person or in the vehicle. Popejoy said no. Popejoy then consented to a search of his person and the vehicle. Deputy Erickson found two live rounds of ammunition in Popejoy's left front shirt pocket. The discovery of the ammunition occurred within one minute of the traffic stop.
Popejoy moved to suppress evidence pursuant to Penal Code section 1538.5 at the preliminary hearing, arguing the search was illegal. The magistrate denied the motion, finding Popejoy had voluntarily consented to the search and the stop had not been unduly prolonged. Popejoy renewed his motion to suppress in a motion to dismiss the information pursuant to Penal Code section 995. The court denied the renewed motion, finding the initial traffic stop was lawful and Popejoy had consented to the subsequent search.
Following denial of his motion to suppress and pursuant to a negotiated agreement, Popejoy pleaded no contest to one count of unlawful possession of ammunition. Consistent with the agreement, the court suspended imposition of sentence and placed Popejoy on felony probation for two years, gave him credit for nine days time served, and imposed statutory fines, fees and assessments. Popejoy filed a timely notice of appeal.
DISCUSSION
We appointed counsel to represent Popejoy on appeal. After reviewing the record, counsel filed a brief raising no issues. On August 16, 2021 counsel wrote Popejoy and advised him that counsel intended to file a no-issue brief and that Popejoy personally could submit his own supplemental letter brief in which he identified any contentions or issues he wished us to consider. We sent Popejoy a similar notice on the same date. We have received no response.
We have reviewed the entire record in this case and are satisfied appellate counsel for Popejoy has complied with counsel's responsibilities and there are no arguable issues. (Smith v. Robbins (2000) 528 U.S. 259, 277-284; People v. Kelly (2006) 40 Cal.4th 106, 118-119; People v. Wende (1979) 25 Cal.3d 436, 441 442.)
DISPOSITION
The judgment is affirmed.
We concur: SEGAL, J. FEUER, J.