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Conference committee adopts sentencing ranges for first-degree trafficking in amendment A40
Summary
Conference committee inserted ranges into statute for presumptive executed sentences for first-degree trafficking and aggravated first-degree trafficking, aligning statutory language with Sentencing Guidelines Commission grid ranges.
The House and Senate Judiciary and Public Safety Conference Committee on May 14 adopted an amendment that sets presumptive sentencing ranges for certain first-degree trafficking offenses.
Representative Novotny moved adoption of House language for Article 4 (R18–R19) and the committee adopted the A40 amendment after debate. Chair Lats explained the amendment modifies the original fixed-month mandates to prescribe ranges that match the Sentencing Guidelines Commission grid. "This amendment ... prescribes a range of 77 to 108 months as a presumptive sentence," the chair said, adding a corresponding range of 123 to 172 months for repeat or bodily-harm conduct.
Committee members said the change avoids treating a one-month variance from a single fixed number as a departure from statute and instead codifies the guideline box range so that any sentence within the box is not considered a departure. The amended language also clarifies these are presumptive executed sentences, not mandatory minimums; departures outside the ranges would require justification under the guidelines.
The committee adopted the article, including the A40 amendment, by voice vote. The transcript does not record a roll-call tally or further discussion of implementation, such as retroactivity or how the change will be incorporated into sentencing worksheets.
The Sentencing Guidelines Commission was cited in committee discussion as the source for the guideline box ranges used in the amendment.
