California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from People v. Patino, A149686 (Cal. App. 2018):
Section 654, subdivision (a), provides in relevant part, "An 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." When section 654 applies to a particular count, the trial court must impose sentence on that count, but then stay its execution. (People v. Correa (2012) 54 Cal.4th 331, 337.)
Under section 654, "the relevant question is typically whether a defendant's ' "course of conduct . . . comprised a divisible transaction which could be punished under more than one statute within the meaning of section 654." ' . . . ' "If all of the offenses were incident to one objective, the defendant may be punished for any one of such offenses but not for more than one." ' " (People v. Correa, supra, 54 Cal.4th at pp. 335-336.)
Page 24
" 'Whether section 654 applies in a given case is a question of fact for the trial court, which is vested with broad latitude in making its determination. [Citations.] Its findings will not be reversed on appeal if there is any substantial evidence to support them. [Citations.] We review the trial court's determination in the light most favorable to the respondent and presume the existence of every fact the trial court could reasonably deduce from the evidence.' " (People v. Ortiz (2012) 208 Cal.App.4th 1354, 1378.)
The above passage should not be considered legal advice. Reliable answers to complex legal questions require comprehensive research memos. To learn more visit www.alexi.com.