P. v. Patino

Filed 7/18/06 P. v. Patino CA2/7

NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS

California Rules of Court, rule 977(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 977(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 977.

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

SECOND APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION SEVEN

APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County,

Jack W. Morgan, Judge. Affirmed.

Vanessa Place, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant.

Bill Lockyer, Attorney General, Robert R. Anderson, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Pamela C. Hamanaka, Assistant Attorney General, Lawrence M. Daniels and Linda C. Johnson, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent.

___________________________________

Miguel A. Patino appeals from the judgment entered after a jury convicted him of four counts of forcible sodomy and one count of torture with a finding he inflicted great bodily injury under circumstances involving domestic violence.[1] His sole contention on appeal is the imposition of upper-term and consecutive sentences based on facts neither found true by the jury nor admitted by him violated his right to a jury trial under Blakely v. Washington ( 2004) 542 U.S. 296 [124 S.Ct. 2531, 159 L.Ed.2d 403] (Blakely).

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

Between December 1, 2002 and April 25, 2003 before leaving for work in the morning, Patino routinely chained together the hands and feet of his wife, A., and locked the chain to the bars on the kitchen window. When Patino returned from work nine hours later, he would force A. to have anal intercourse with him by cutting her with a knife and an ice pick, and hitting her in the head with a bottle and a hammer. Patino also burned her buttocks and vagina with cigarettes or a lighter and kicked and hit her in the face. He would thrust a toothbrush into A.'s anus to clean her. After sodomizing her, Patino would drag his wife by the hair, place her in a cold bath and then tie her feet and kick her in the belly. A., who also suffered from epileptic seizures, endured this horrific treatment on a daily basis. She received no medical attention for her resulting injuries until April 2003, when she was admitted to the intensive care unit, placed on a ventilator, and was nonresponsive. There were numerous injuries to her face, upper torso, abdomen, and legs in various stages of healing. She was also covered with bruises and multiple scars.[2] Patino's 14-year-old brother lived with him and his wife. Patino induced him and a neighbor to lie to police on his behalf as to how his wife came to be injured.

At the sentencing hearing, the trial court commented: â€