State v. Lee, 228 N.C. App. 324 (Jul. 16, 2013)

The trial court erred by granting the defendant’s MAR and retroactively applying 2009 amendments to the Structured Sentencing Act (SSA) to the defendant’s 2005 offenses. The court reasoned that the Session Law amending the SSA stated that “[t]his act becomes effective December 1, 2009, and applies to offenses committed on or after that date.” Thus, it concluded, it is clear that the legislature did not intend for the 2009 grid to apply retroactively to offenses committed prior to December 1, 2009.