by School of Government faculty members Jamie Markham and Alyson Grine Suppose Ronald is convicted of six counts of communicating threats, a Class 1 misdemeanor. Ronald has three prior convictions, making him prior conviction level II. The facts are bad and the sentencing judge wants to max Ronald out with the longest sentence allowable. What is it? A. 270 days B. 240 days C. 90 days Here's a link to the misdemeanor sentencing grid, in case you don't have it memorized. Under G.S. 15A-1340.22(a), when the court elects to impose consecutive sentences for two or more misdemeanors, the cumulative length of the sentences of imprisonment must not exceed twice the maximum sentence authorized for the class and prior conviction level of the most serious offense. If you forgot about the "twice the maximum for the most serious offense" rule, you might have answered A (270 days), thinking the court could just stack six 45-day sentences. If you answered B (240 days), you remembered the twice-the-maximum rule, but you thought it capped consecutive sentences at twice the absolute maximum anyone - not just Ronald - could get for a Class 1 misdemeanor. The longest sentence in the Class 1/Level III cell is 120 days, and 2 x 120 is 240. But G.S. 15A-1340.22(a) refers to the "maximum sentence authorized for the class and prior conviction level of the most serious offense." That language - particularly the reference to prior conviction level - requires the judge to look not to the hypothetical maximum [...]
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