Saturday 13 July 2019

Florida’s Sentencing Guidelines – A Complete Overview

Federal government and Florida sentencing guidelines are mainly used to determine a sentence range. Guidelines are advisory in the Federal Criminal Court system and the federal courts are mandated to consider various factors before passing sentence on a defendant. Learn about the factors here.
Florida sentencing guidelines rely on a scheme that is basic and dictates the minimum sentence that can be imposed by the judge for felony cases. Florida also has a non-exclusive list of reasons for a downward departure, but a motion for such a departure must be filed and a hearing scheduled on the motion. A departure hearing can last 10 minutes or 2 days. Oftentimes, a departure hearing has the same look and feel of a trial, but the burden is on the defendant to prove that he or she is worthy of a departure.


Structured Sentencing in Florida
The Florida Sentencing Guidelines represents the state’s structured policy with respect to the sentencing of non-capital felony offenders. There are three distinct versions of the guidelines currently in operation in Florida.
  • They provide for a uniform set of standards to guide the sentencing court in sentencing decisions.
  • They evaluate relevant factors present at sentencing relating to the offense or offenses and the defendant’s prior criminal behavior.
  • They are attempts to provide for “truth in sentencing” and eliminate unwarranted disparity in sentencing decisions.
  • They focus on ensuring that the punishment is commensurate with the offenses before the court for sentencing
  • They are mathematically based and provide a means to address several policy areas. Every assessment of points reflects a policy statement regarding the relative severity of a criminal behavior.
  • Each policy is represented on its respective score-sheet, which must be completed for each felony defendant prior to sentencing.

Unstructured Sentencing – History of Sentencing Policy
Prior to October 1, 1983 courts used to sentence in accordance with the provisions of law, that permitted a wide range of judicial discretion in the sentencing decision. Sanctions ranged from a fine up to state prison incarceration. The statutory maximum penalties of incarceration in state prison were:
  • Five years for a felony of the third degree
  • Fifteen years for a felony of the second degree
  • Thirty years for a felony of the first degree
  • Life for a life felony

This was a form of an indeterminate sentencing policy because most offenders sentenced to prison were by law, parole eligible. Parole was a discretionary early release policy, which obviously had a significant impact upon both the percentage, and the actual amount of time served.
If you want to get in touch with a lawyer regarding Florida sentencing guidelines, Paul DeCailly of BDM Criminal Lawyers would be a great choice.

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