Penal Code § 12022.4 PC – Aiding or Abetting a Felony With a Firearm

Penal Code 12022.4 PC creates a sentencing enhancement for anyone who (a) furnishes, or attempts to furnish, a firearm to someone else, and (b) does so with the purpose of aiding or abetting that person to commit a felony.

The enhancements under this statute subject a defendant to a certain number of years in California state prison. This time period is in addition and consecutive to the punishment that the accused receives for the underlying felony offense.

Examples of when enhanced sentences will be applied under this code section include:

• Dominique gives his friend a rifle so that he completes the crime of felony murder, per SB 1437.
• Jane gives her husband a handgun when he is home, and he then goes out and commits grand theft, per PC 487.
• Jerome sneaks a gun into his buddy’s hand so that the friend can finish a robbery, under PC 211.

Defenses

Luckily, there are several legal defenses that a person can raise to challenge enhanced penalties under this statute. These include showing that:

• the crime that was committed was not a felony,
• the defendant was arrested following a coerced confession, and/or
• the defendant acted under duress.

Our California criminal defense attorneys will explain the following in this article:

• 1. The Law in Penal Code 12022.4
• 2. Additional Prison Time
• 3. Fighting The Case
  • 3.1. No felony
  • 3.2. Coerced confession
  • 3.3. Duress
• 4. Related offenses

1. The Law in Penal Code 12022.4

Penal Code 12022.4 PC is the California statute that creates a firearm sentencing enhancement for anyone who:

1. furnishes, or attempt to furnish, a firearm to someone else, and
2. does so with the purpose of aiding or abetting that person to commit a felony.¹

Note that “commit,” as used in this code section, has a broader meaning than under other firearm enhancement statutes. Under PC 12022.4, a defendant does not need to be present when the crime is committed. If he gives someone a gun before a felony is committed, the enhancement will apply as long as it is part of one continuous transaction.²

2. Additional Prison Time

Punishment under this enhancement is an additional prison term of one, two, or three years. This sentence is in addition and consecutive to the sentence for the underlying felony offense.³

A defendant must be sentenced to the middle term – two years – unless the court finds circumstances in aggravation or mitigation. The judge must state the reasons for his or her choice on the record at the time of the sentence.⁴

3. Fighting The Case

If a person is accused of violating this statute, then he can challenge the accusation by raising a legal defense. A good defense can often get a charge reduced or even dismissed.

Three common defenses to accusations under this code section are:

1. no felony,
2. coerced confession, and/or
3. duress.

3.1. No felony

PC 12022.4 only applies if someone furnishes a gun to another and that party commits a felony. It is always a defense, therefore, for an accused to show that there was no underlying felony offense. For example, maybe the other person committed a California misdemeanor or an infraction.

3.2. Coerced confession

California law states that police may not use overbearing measures to coerce a confession.

If a party can show that the police coerced him into a confession, then:

• the judge may exclude the confession from evidence, or
• the case could get dropped altogether if the party got pressured into confessing to a crime he didn’t commit.

3.3. Duress

Duress is a legal defense in which an accused basically says: “He made me do it.” The defense applies to the very limited situation in which a person commits a crime (here, violating PC 12022.4), because somebody threatened to kill him if the crime was not committed.

4. Related Offenses

There are three crimes related to a person aiding or abetting a felony with a firearm. These are:

1. Personally using a firearm during the commission of a serious felony – PC 12022.53,
2. personally using firearms during the commission of a felony – PC 12022.5, and
3. using a firearm in the commission of a sex crime – PC 12022.3.

Personally using a firearm during the commission of a serious felony – PC 12022.53

Penal Code 12022.53 is better known as California’s “10-20-life ‘use a gun and you’re done'” law.

PC 12022.53 provides a sentencing enhancement for when a defendant personally uses a firearm during the commission of certain serious felonies. Some of these felonies include (but not limited to):

• Penal Code 187 PC, murder,
• Penal Code 203 PC, mayhem,
• Penal Code 207 PC, kidnapping,
• Penal Code 261 PC, rape, and
• Penal Code 211 PC, robbery.⁵

Penal Code 12022.53 PC adds to a felony sentence the longest of the following which applies:

• 10 years in prison for using a gun,
• 20 years for firing a gun, or
• 25 years to life for killing or seriously injuring another person with a gun.⁶

The enhancement is in addition and consecutive to the sentence for the underlying felony conviction.

Personally using firearms during the commission of a felony – PC 12022.5

California Penal Code 12022.5 creates a sentencing enhancement of between three to ten years for defendants that personally use a firearm during the commission or attempted commission of a felony.⁷

“Personally use a firearm” means that an accused intentionally:

• displayed the gun in a menacing manner,
• fired the gun, or
• hit another person with the gun.⁸

Using a firearm in the commission of a sex crime – PC 12022.3

Penal Code 12022.3 PC imposes sentencing enhancements if a defendant used, or had in his possession, a firearm during the commission of certain sex offenses. Such offenses include (but are not limited to):

• California Penal Code 261 PC, rape,
• Penal Code 286 PC, forcible sodomy, and
• Penal Code 288, lewd acts with a child.⁹

The sentencing enhancements under PC 12022.3 can range from one to ten years.¹⁰

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