California Legal Brief

The Rule of People v. Lopez-Tapia is that the lower term presumption under Penal Code section 1170(b)(6) requires evidence that childhood trauma was a contributing factor to the specific offense, not merely that trauma contributed to general gang involvement, under circumstances where a defendant claims childhood trauma should trigger mandatory lower term sentencing.

The Rule of People v. Nielsen is that a trial court's failure to make express findings under Penal Code section 1170(b)(6) does not require reversal when the record demonstrates the court understood and considered childhood trauma as a mitigating factor and weighed it against aggravating circumstances, under circumstances where the defendant made an initial showing that childhood trauma contributed to drug addiction and criminal conduct, but no party explicitly raised section 1170(b)(6) at sentencing.