In the case of Tanya Lavonne Riggs vs. The Superior Court of Contra Costa County, California, with the court case ID A169716 filed on April 25, 2024, Riggs challenges an order declining to rule on a Penal Code section 1203.4 petition. This petition seeks to dismiss charges that resulted in a 1980s misdemeanor conviction for driving under the influence (DUI). The court concluded that the superior court erred in failing to hear the matter and decided to issue a peremptory writ directing the superior court to consider the section 1203.4 petition on its merits.
Riggs was arrested by the Contra Costa County Sheriff's Department on August 24, 1985, for felony DUI causing bodily injury. Her application for "Global Entry" status was denied due to her felony DUI arrest being deemed as a conviction in absence of a record of final disposition of the case.
The petitioner then filed a section 1203.4 petition seeking to dismiss the DUI charge from 1985, stating she was initially charged with a felony violation but her attorney negotiated a plea to a misdemeanor violation. Despite diligent search efforts, Riggs has been unable to secure records of her conviction and final disposition of the case.
Riggs is seeking judgment for dismissal of charges that resulted in her misdemeanor conviction for DUI from the 1980s. She claims she has no prior or subsequent arrests or convictions and completed probation without any violations.
Justices Humes, Banke and Langhorne Wilson concluded that the superior court erred in declining to consider and rule upon the section 1203.4 petition but expressed no opinion regarding whether petitioner is entitles to relief, instead remanding the decision on this back to the Contra Costa County Superior Court.