In People v. Blocker (2010) 190 Cal.App.4th 438, the court held the trial court may deny a petition for a certificate of rehabilitation when a defendant refused to admit guilt on the underlying offense of assault, battery, and molestation of his stepdaughter. Defendant otherwise appeared to be an ideal candidate for a certificate and "there was no disagreement that since his conviction defendant has led a law-abiding and virtually blameless life." (Id. at p. 441.) The court reasoned, "'Acknowledgement of guilt is a critical first step towards rehabilitation.' ." (Id. at p. 442.) "This was not any crime, but one whose statistically significant odds of recidivism moved the Legislature to impose the lifetime registration requirement of section 290 . . . . . Granting defendant's petition would release him from that obligation. . This is a consequence that could naturally give a trial court pause. So would the fact that, if it granted defendant's petition, the court would be essentially making a personal representation to the Governor that defendant was worthy of pardon. The hurdles erected by the Legislature to obtain a certificate of rehabilitation are not intended to be easily surmounted. The trial courts are entrusted with the responsibility, in the exercise of a sound discretion, to ensure that the strict statutory standards for rehabilitation are maintained. . The trial court here had a genuine concern that defendant's adamant refusal to admit any criminal culpability was a cloud on defendant's claimed rehabilitation. Because we cannot conclude as a matter of law that the trial court's concern was not a legitimate consideration in the exercise of its discretion citation, we cannot conclude that in denying defendant's petition the trial court exceeded the bounds of reason." (Blocker, supra, 190 Cal.App.4th at p. 445.)