California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from People v. Maldonado, B278458 (Cal. App. 2017):
Defendant argues that his sentence on count 4 must be stayed because counts 3 and 4 cover the same course of conduct, and the punishment is duplicative in violation of section 654. Section 654 provides that "[a]n act or omission that is punishable in different ways by different provisions of law shall be punished under the provision that provides for the longest potential term of imprisonment, but in no case shall the act or omission be punished under more than one provision." "[I]t is well settled that section 654 applies not only where there was but one act in the ordinary sense, but also where there was a course of conduct which violated more than one statute but nevertheless constituted an indivisible transaction." (People v. Perez (1979)
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23 Cal.3d 545, 551 (Perez).) The trial court is tasked with determining whether the charges involve an indivisible course of conduct. We "review the court's explicit or implicit factual resolutions for substantial evidence." (People v. McCoy (2012) 208 Cal.App.4th 1333, 1338; People v. Hutchins (2001) 90 Cal.App.4th 1308, 1312-1313.)
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