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IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO

2 STATE OF NEW MEXICO, 3 4 v. 5 ANDREW ROMERO, 6

Plaintiff-Appellee, NO. 27,050

Defendant-Appellant.

7 APPEAL FROM THE DISTRICT COURT OF VALENCIA COUNTY 8 William A. Sanchez, District Judge

9 Gary K. King, Attorney General 10 Anita Carlson, Assistant Attorney General 11 Santa Fe, NM 12 for Appellee 13 Robert E. Tangora, L.L.C. 14 Robert E. Tangora 15 Santa Fe, NM 16 for Appellant 17 18 WECHSLER, Judge. 19

MEMORANDUM OPINION

Defendant Andrew Romero appeals from his conviction after a guilty plea of

20 second degree murder (firearm enhancement), a second degree felony; aggravated

1 battery causing great bodily harm (firearm enhancement), a third degree felony; and 2 tampering with evidence, a fourth degree felony. The district court committed 3 Defendant to the Department of Corrections to serve consecutive terms as follows: 4 murder--fifteen years, followed by two years of parole; aggravated battery--three 5 years, followed by two years of parole; and tampering with evidence--eighteen 6 months, followed by one year of parole. It enhanced the murder and tampering with 7 evidence sentences by one year for each offense for the use of a firearm. It ordered 8 all sentences to be consecutive for a total of twenty-one and one-half years, followed 9 by a parole period of two years. Defendant contends on appeal that (1) the district 10 court imposed an illegal sentence by ordering a two-year parole after Defendant serves 11 his entire sentence, and (2) Defendant's trial counsel did not provide him with 12 effective assistance. We affirm. 13 ILLEGAL SENTENCE 14

Defendant argues that Gillespie v. State, 107 N.M. 455, 760 P.2d 147 (1988),

15 and Brock v. Sullivan, 105 N.M. 412, 733 P.2d 860 (1987), require a one-year period 16 of parole after serving a sentence for a fourth degree felony and that, therefore, the 17 district court's sentence was illegal. However, as Defendant recognizes, since 18 Defendant made this argument to the district court, this Court has issued its opinion

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1 in State v. Utley, 2008-NMCA-080,

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New Mexico Law