Memo: IPG 57 (RECENT CSC OPINIONS: LEWIS & PRUDHOLME)

This edition of the Inquisitive Prosecutor’s Guide discusses two recent California Supreme Court decisions.

In People v. Lewis (2023) 14 Cal.5th 876 [2023 WL 4112145], the California Supreme Court decided the issue of whether the element of “force or fear” is “relaxed” when the adult being kidnapped is too intoxicated to consent to the movement. Some other ancillary issues of import were also raised. To assist us in understanding what happened in Lewis and its significance, we are joined on the accompany podcast by the trial prosecutor in the case, Santa Clara County DDA Jonathan Beardsley.

In People v. Prudholme (2023) 14 Cal.5th 961 [2023 WL 4169428], the California Supreme Court decided the question of whether the legislative reduction in probationary periods enacted by AB 1950 (that went into effect in 2021) applied retroactively to defendants whose cases were not final – even if the length of the probationary period had been negotiated as part of a plea bargain. To help in explaining the rationale underlying that decision, we are joined on the accompanying podcast by a prosecutor who has had to argue a similar question in other cases, Santa Clara County DDA Pablo Wudka-Robles.