In Re Birch

In July 1972 petitioner, James Birch, appeared before the Los Angeles Municipal Court without counsel and entered a plea of guilty to the misdemeanor charge of violating Penal Code section 647, subdivision (a), which proscribes engaging in ". . . lewd or dissolute conduct in any public place or in any place open to the public or exposed to public view."*fn1 Birch now seeks a writ of habeas corpus, challenging the validity of his guilty plea on several grounds. As discussed below, we   have concluded that petitioner's conviction must be set aside because the record does not reveal that Birch was properly advised prior to his plea either of his right to counsel or of the sex registration requirement flowing directly from a conviction under section 647, subdivision (a).