P. v. Morgan
William Nelson Morgan (appellant) appeals from the judgment entered following a jury trial that resulted in his conviction of second degree commercial burglary (Pen. Code, 459).[1] The trial court sentenced appellant to the low term of 16 months in state prison. Court appointed counsel to represent him on this appeal. The following facts were adduced at trial: On November 17, 2008, at 10:38 a.m., Covina Police Department Officer John Malinoski received a call that someone had triggered the alarm at the Carvin Guitars store, which had been closed for business for almost a month. Officer Malinoski arrived at the scene two minutes later. Officer Malinoski saw a white Ford Explorer parked near the backdoor with its engine running. Officer Malinoski also observed a broken lock dangling from the stores backdoor. Appellant emerged from inside the store holding a handful of items, several of which carried the Carvin Guitars label. Officer Malinoski saw appellant place the items in the rear seat of the Explorer. The officer detained appellant and searched the Explorer. Inside the vehicle, he found several additional items with the Carvin Guitars label and a two foot long crowbar. There was white and gray colored transfer paint on the crowbar. The paint appeared to match the stores backdoor which had been painted white, and then gray.
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