Sanchez v. Superior Court

In Sanchez v. Superior Court (1982) 131 Cal.App.3d 884, one of the jointly charged defendants was in custody and another codefendant was out on bail. The public defender representing the noncustody codefendant obtained a continuance of the trial date because he was engaged in another trial and had two other "must-go" criminal trials immediately thereafter. (Sanchez, supra, 131 Cal.App.3d at p. 887.) The Court of Appeal concluded that good cause to continue, as to the objecting incarcerated codefendant, was not shown because the delay was directly attributable to the state's failure to provide a sufficient number of public defenders. (Id. at p. 890.) However, the Sanchez court also stated: "We conclude that on balance, whatever unspecified 'interests of justice' might be promoted by a joint trial in the underlying prosecution, the state interest cannot be permitted to subordinate the conflicting right of petitioner to a trial within the 60-day period." (Id. at p. 893.)