The Impact of COVID-19 on Sentencing

While the suspension of jury trials caused by the pandemic has slowed the work of the criminal courts, judges across the state continue to sentence defendants who enter guilty pleas. The prospect of their clients facing prison time during the pandemic has spurred defense attorneys to consider what arguments might be made during sentencing proceedings with respect to the heightened danger of a defendant contracting COVID-19 in a correctional facility. Few appellate courts have considered the impact the pandemic might have on sentencing, but some early opinions from state and federal courts have held that underlying health issues that render defendants vulnerable to COVID-19 constitute compelling grounds for relief from a sentence previously imposed. United States v. Zukerman, 451 F. Supp. 3d 329, 334–35 (S.D.N.Y. 2020); United States v. Macfarlane, 438 F. Supp. 3d 125, 127 (D. Mass. 2020); see also People v. Garcia, No. 2648/17, 2020 WL 6066990, at *4 (N.Y. Sup. Ct. Oct. 8, 2020) (granting release pending appeal). While the issue has yet to reach North Carolina’s appellate courts, the state’s sentencing laws provide a framework for trial courts to mitigate the sentences they impose in response to concerns about a defendant’s health and COVID-19. There are a number of ways defendants and their attorneys might seek relief at sentencing on account of the pandemic. These include filing a motion for a presentencing investigation into the defendant’s health; asking the court to take account of nonstatutory mitigating factors relative to the pandemic; or asking the court to find [...]