P. v. Cavalli




Filed 4/26/11 P. v. Cavalli CA3
NOT TO BE PUBLISHED


California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 8.1115(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.





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IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA
THIRD APPELLATE DISTRICT
(Butte)
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THE PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. MICHAEL CALEB CAVALLI, Defendant and Appellant.

C065652 (Super. Ct. No. CM031205)

Defendant Michael Caleb Cavalli pleaded no contest to voluntary manslaughter and admitted he personally used a firearm in the commission of the offense. (Pen. Code, §§ 192, subd. (a), 12022.5, subd. (a).)[1] He was sentenced to an aggregate term of 16 years in state prison. On appeal, defendant contends the trial court abused its discretion by imposing the upper term of 10 years on the firearm use enhancement. Finding this contention to be without merit, we shall affirm the judgment.
FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND
Because this case comes to us after a negotiated plea, our statement of facts is derived from defendant's probation report.
In the morning of July 28, 2009, defendant was at his mother's house on Lucky John Road in Paradise. At 8:13 a.m., defendant's mother, Marilynn Hudson, received a phone call from her estranged husband and defendant's stepfather, Ronald Lee Hudson,[2] a 48-year-old African-American. Defendant's mother hung up the phone. Approximately 25 minutes later, Hudson approached the residence, knocked on the locked door, and peered through various windows. Defendant responded by securing his mother and younger brother in the bathroom. He then loaded between six and eight bullets into a .25-caliber pistol and cocked it. Defendant opened the door and immediately shot Hudson in the chest. Defendant admitted acquiring the gun and the ammunition the night before.
Hudson hunched over, clutched his abdomen, and walked away from the house. Defendant was seen pursuing Hudson toward an adjacent parking lot with the pistol pointed at an approximately 45-degree angle â€