Within the facts resulting in this well-reasoned opinion lurks an interesting Proposition 47-related issue which was not ripe in this case, but will eventually raise its head in the appellate courts.
Mr. Marks was convicted of Penal Code section 273.5(a) (domestic violence) and admitted six prior prison terms (each a one year status enhancement). He was eventually sent "upstate" for 8 years (2 years for the domestic violence plus six for the prior prison terms). Three of the prior prison terms involved convictions for simple possession of controlled substances (Health & Safety Code section 11350). Recall that Proposition 47 amended 11350 to reduce the crime, absent exceptions not applicable here, to a misdemeanor.
Marks petitions the trial court, in propria persona, to reduce his three prior 11350 convictions to misdemeanors. But he files the petition under the case number for the domestic violence matter and the trial court denies the petition. In straightforward fashion the panel examines the statutory language and affirms the denial. The panel holds that Marks needs to file the petitions under the case numbers for the 11350 convictions, since those are the convictions he seeks to reduce (not the 273.5 conviction).
The issue lurking is this: does an otherwise eligible prior prison term that was served for an offense which subsequently is reduced to a misdemeanor under Proposition 47 still qualify as a one year status enhancement? It is a question for another day.
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