When a Criminal Sentence Begins

Sometimes there is a delay between when the court pronounces a sentence and when the judgment is actually signed. When that happens, questions can arise about when the sentence begins. Is it when the judge says it, or when he or she signs it? Under G.S. 15A-101(4a), in criminal matters, “[j]udgment is entered when sentence is pronounced.” That is different from civil matters, where Rule 58 says “a judgment is entered when it is reduced to writing, signed by the judge, and filed with the clerk of court.” So, aside from delayed active sentences (allowed under G.S. 15A-1353(a), as described here), sentences set to run at the expiration of other sentences, or contingent probation cases (allowed under G.S. 15A-1346(b), as described here), a sentence begins when the judge says it, not when the judgment is signed. State v. Trent, 359 N.C. 583 (2005). Probationary sentences raise some special concerns. Anecdotally, I hear that it can sometimes take weeks to get a signed probation judgment in some parts of the state. Nevertheless, under G.S. 15A-101(4a) and G.S. 15A-1346(a) (“a period of probation commences on the day it is imposed”), the person is on probation from the moment the court says so in open court. That means time starts ticking toward expiration on that day, not on the day the order is signed. The difference between those dates will sometimes matter at the end of a case, where a court will only have jurisdiction under G.S. 15A-1344(f) if a violation was filed (and [...]