How Is Federal Sentencing Calculated As Opposed To State Sentencing?
In some ways similar to the North Carolina sentencing charts, in federal cases there is a chart that lays out a person’s sentencing exposure based on the person’s prior criminal history, and the seriousness of the offense. However, the similarities end there.
To sentence someone in North Carolina court, you calculate that person’s criminal history points, find the class of felony or misdemeanor for which they are convicted, and line up the two to find the minimum ranges of months punishment. Unless there is a mandatory minimum or maximum otherwise set by statute, the sentence the grids provide is the only sentence the judge has the power to give you. In other words, North Carolina’s sentencing scheme is mandatory.
By contrast, the federal sentencing table is merely a guideline, which means the court has the discretion, or ability, to go above or beyond the range set out in the table. You can receive a departure or variance that is downward, or lesser than, the range in the table. This is something your attorney must usually request specifically from the court. However, this also means that the prosecutor can ask for an upward variance or departure.
As with state cases, however, if a particular federal statute mandates a specific mandatory minimum or maximum sentence for that offense, that law controls and the Court has to sentence you according to the statute.
Federal cases also vary wildly in countless other aspects from state cases, from how detention hearings are handled to how criminal history points are calculated. Whether you are facing state or federal charges, contact a criminal defense attorney who is seasoned in that area as soon as possible to protect your rights from the start.
High-level Felonies
Class A offenses are deemed the most serious. They include murder in the first degree and the unlawful use of a nuclear, biological or chemical weapon of mass destruction. The maximum penalty for this type of offense is life in prison or death.
Along with Class A, other high-level felonies include Class B1 or B2, Class C, and Class D. Examples of offenses in these categories include: First-degree sexual offense Second-degree murder, Second-degree rape, First-degree kidnapping, Voluntary manslaughter, Armed robbery
Mid-Level Felonies
This includes Class E, F or G offenses. Punishments for these crimes vary widely with some defendants receiving intensive and prolonged probation and others receiving long prison sentences. Certain drug trafficking crimes in this category carry mandatory minimum jail sentences.
Child abuse Assault with a firearm on a law enforcement officer Common-law robbery Assault with a deadly weapon Arson of public buildings Habitual impaired driving
Low-Level Felonies
Class G and I offenses do not carry a mandatory minimum sentence that requires jail time. Often, probation, house arrest, community service or substance abuse counseling is imposed as punishment instead of jail time. Maximum penalty for a Class I offense is 24 months in jail
Class I offenses are the least serious. They include: Possession of marijuana Financial transaction card theft Forgery of notes, checks or securities Breaking or entering motor vehicles.
Felony Classes A-D
Prison Sentences
Class A felony: death, or life with or without parole. Class B1 felony: 144 months to life without parole. Class B2 felony: 94 to 393 months. Class C felony: 44 to 182 months. Class D felony: 38 to 160 months.
Felony Classes E-g
Prison Sentences
Class E felony: 15 to 63 months Class F felony: 10 to 41 months Class G felony: 8 to 31 months
Felony Classes H-i
Prison Sentences
Class H felony: 4 to 25 months Class I felony: 3 to 12 months
