The People, Plaintiff and Respondent v. Maurice D. Sanders, Defendant and Appellant

Summary

The court held that possession of a firearm after conviction of a felony and possession of a firearm after conviction of a specified violent offense are not necessarily included offenses because either offense can be committed without committing the other. It further held that the defendant could be separately punished for each of two firearms, but could not be separately punished under both statutes for possession of the same firearm; the sentence under the violent-offender statute should be imposed and the conflicting sentence stayed. Justice Liu, concurring, agreed with the result and emphasized that the statutory "notwithstanding" language clearly authorized both convictions.