Does Section 470(d) of the California Criminal Code apply to a defendant who has pleaded guilty to a charge of offering a false document for recording?

Defendant asks us to reverse his convictions for violations of section 470(d). He contends section 115(a) is the more specific statute because offering a false document for recording under section 115(a) is necessarily a forgery for purposes of section 470(d), which applies to one who "passes or attempts or offers to pass" certain documents as true and genuine. We are unpersuaded. First, unlike false filing under section 115(a), forgery under section 470(d) requires the intent to defraud. (See People v. Geibel (1949) 93 Cal.App.2d 147, 168 [ 115 does not require intent to defraud]; accord People v. Bell (1996) 45 Cal.App.4th 1030, 1061.)

Page 6