Sentencing Guidelines Commission approves 2025 changes, inserts “adult” in departure language after split debate

The Sentencing Guidelines Commission voted Dec. 18 to adopt a package of proposed 2025 guideline modifications, including the insertion of the word “adult” before the phrase “state of adjudication” in a newly drafted departure factor. Commissioner Moore moved the package; Commissioner Larkin seconded. Chair Mitchell announced the vote: 10 in favor, 1 opposed (Commissioner Saxena).

The vote follows an extended debate over several parts of the package — most notably whether to uprank fourth-degree assault and how juvenile adjudications and decay periods should affect mitigating departure factors. Commissioner Castro raised a central concern during discussion: “so many of these cases are people experiencing mental health issues while they are in custody,” and warned that raising severity could disproportionately affect people with mental-health crises.

Supporters of the package, including Commissioners Ladd and Moore, framed the changes as part of a negotiated compromise intended to improve proportionality across the guidelines and to protect certain categories of victims. “You have to have quite a history to really get up there and then you're just not getting much of a consequence,” Commissioner Larkin said in support of upranking certain offenses, arguing the existing grid undervalued harms to victims in some circumstances.

Commissioners debated narrower options. Chair Mitchell proposed a middle-ground of moving fourth-degree assault to severity level 2 rather than the originally proposed level 3 to address concerns raised in public comment while preserving other elements of the package. After that discussion, the motion adopted the package as presented with the single textual change adding the word “adult” before “state of adjudication” in the departure factor.

The package was taken up after the commission reviewed the record of a Nov. 20 public hearing (4 people testified in person) and 17 written comments submitted during the comment period. The staff report and draft report to the legislature will reflect the commission’s action; staff noted a final vote on the commission’s report is expected in January when the legislative report is submitted.

The commission’s action does not change statutory law; it updates the Sentencing Guidelines Commission’s recommended rankings and guideline text that the commission will forward to the legislature for consideration. Commissioner Saxena, the sole recorded dissenting vote, said he could not support the package in its entirety given unresolved concerns raised by public comment and the commissioners’ own deliberations.

Next steps: staff will incorporate the text change into the draft language and include the adopted package and vote tally in the report to the legislature, which the commission expects to finalize in January 2026.