Is Section 654 of the California Criminal Code applicable to multiple punishment?

Section 654 addresses both multiple punishment and multiple prosecution. The separate concerns have different purposes and different rules of prohibition. "The purpose of the protection against multiple punishment is to insure that the defendant's punishment will be commensurate with his criminal liability." (Neal v. State of California (1960) 55 Cal.2d 11, 20 (Neal).) Thus, "[a] defendant who commits an act of violence with the intent to harm more than one person or by a means likely to

Page 9

cause harm to several persons is more culpable than a defendant who harms only one person." (Ibid.)