SENATE BILL REPORT

SB 6462

BYSenator Nelson; by request of Sentencing Guidelines Commission

Making technical corrections on procedures for sentencing adult felons.

Senate Committee on Law & Justice

Senate Hearing Date(s):February 3, 1988; February 4, 1988

Majority Report:  That Substitute Senate Bill No. 6462 be substituted therefor, and the substitute bill do pass.

      Signed by Senators Pullen, Chairman; McCaslin, Vice Chairman; Halsan, Hayner, Madsen, Nelson, Newhouse, Niemi, Talmadge.

Senate Staff:Jeanne Cushman Scott (786-7461)

                  February 5, 1988

AS REPORTED BY COMMITTEE ON LAW & JUSTICE, FEBRUARY 4, 1988

BACKGROUND:

Under the Sentencing Reform Act, a criminal defendant's prior criminal history is used to determine the standard range for the current offense.  Included in criminal history are juvenile convictions which are felonies.  For class B and C juvenile offenses, the criminal defendant must have been at least 23 at the time the current offense was committed for prior offenses to count as criminal history.

The chair of the Board of Prison Terms and Paroles is an ex officio member of the Sentencing Guidelines Commission until July 1, 1988.  After that date the chair of the Clemency and Pardons Board is an ex officio member.

The Legislature last year created the crime of homicide by abuse with penalty provisions the same as murder in the first degree.  For purposes of determining an offender's "offender score", if the present conviction is for murder in the first degree, prior convictions are given an enhanced score.

In determining the offender score for a current felony traffic offense, each prior adult or juvenile vehicular homicide conviction adds two points.  Prior vehicular assault convictions count one point.

Offenders with sentences of total confinement of one year or less may have alternative sentences imposed including partial confinement and community supervision.

A person convicted of three or more serious violent offenses is sentenced using the sentencing range for the most serious offense and the offender's criminal history is used in the offender score.  The sentencing range for the other offenses are determined using an offender score of zero.

Table 3 of the Sentencing Reform Act contains a partial summary of the method of determining an offender's offender score.

SUMMARY:

Prior juvenile convictions for serious traffic offenses are counted as part of adult criminal history in the same manner as class B and C felonies.

The chair of the Indeterminate Sentencing Review Board is an ex officio member of the Sentencing Guidelines Commission until July 1, 1992, when the chair of the Clemency and Pardons Board takes over.

A present conviction of homicide by abuse is treated in the same manner as a present conviction of murder in the first degree.

Prior adult and juvenile vehicular assault convictions count two points, the same as vehicular homicide, for present convictions of felony traffic offenses.

An alternative to total confinement may include community supervision only for offenders convicted of nonviolent offenses.

If a person has been convicted of three or more serious violent offenses, the sentence range is determined for the offense with the highest seriousness level.  The offender's prior convictions and other current convictions that are not serious violent offenses are used in the offender score.

Table 3 of the Sentencing Reform act, which partially summarizes the offender scoring rules, is repealed.

The act applies to crimes committed after July 1, 1988.

EFFECT OF PROPOSED SUBSTITUTE:

Converting of total confinement time to community service time for nonviolent offenders is limited to a maximum conversion limit of 240 hours or 30 days.

Appropriation:    none

Revenue:    none

Fiscal Note:      none requested

Senate Committee - Testified: Roxanne Park, Sentencing Guidelines Commission