People v. Casillas

In People v. Casillas (1997) 60 Cal.App.4th 445, the defendant agreed prior to entering his plea that if he did not appear for sentencing, the sentence would not be limited to a maximum term of 90 days in jail as a condition of felony probation, but would revert to the three-year statutory maximum. We upheld imposition of the three-year sentence and denial of a motion to withdraw the plea after the defendant initially failed to appear, finding the record supported an inference that the sanction for nonappearance had been negotiated between the parties and "resulted from the give-and-take of plea bargaining." ( Id. at p. 452.) The Court concluded "the return provision was a valid part of the plea agreement itself and, therefore, enforceable without regard to section 1192.5." ( Id. at p. 453.) The Court distilled the following principles: "First, when a defendant fails to appear at sentencing after entering a bargained plea with no discussion about a specific sanction for nonappearance, he or she is entitled to withdraw the plea if the court refuses to honor the plea bargain. Second, the same rule applies when, during the plea proceedings but after the parties have negotiated the basic plea bargain, the court imposes an additional condition providing a sanction for nonappearance. Third, when the parties themselves agree as part of the plea bargain to a specific sanction for nonappearance, the court need not permit the defendant to withdraw his or her plea but may invoke the bargained-for sanction." ( People v. Casillas, supra, 60 Cal.App.4th at pp. 451-452.)