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Wilks v. State7/3/2002
second-degree murder.
F. Sentencing
[ ] Mr. Wilks contends the trial court abused its discretion by sentencing him to serve seventy years to life in the Wyoming State Penitentiary. The punishment for a crime is within the legislature's province. Hodgins v. State, 706 P.2d 655, 658 (Wyo. 1985). Here, the legislature has provided for a sentence of up to life in prison for tho se convicted of second-degree murder. See § 6-2-104. "[W]e do not set aside a sentence if it is within the legislatively mandated minimum and maximum terms in the absence of a clear abuse of discretion." Young v. State, 904 P.2d 359, 362 (Wyo. 1995). Since the relevant statute sets a maximum term of life in prison, Mr. Wilks' sentence is within permissible limits. However, we still "maintain a window of reviewability, even when the trial court has imposed a legally prescribed sentence." Smith v. State, 922 P.2d 846, 848 (Wyo. 1996). Trial courts have broad discretion to determine the appropriate length of imprisonment. We recently described the standard of an abuse of discretion as "reaching the question of reasonableness of the choice made by the trial court." Vaughn v. State, 962 P.2d 149, 151 (Wyo. 1998). We confirmed the following definition:
"Judicial discretion is a composite of many things, among which are conclusions drawn from objective criteria; it means a sound judgment exercised with regard to what is right under the circumstances and without doing so arbitrarily or capriciously." Id. (quoting Martin v. State, 720 P.2d 894, 897 (Wyo. 1986)).
[ ] "In assessing the reasonableness of the sentence, consideration is to be given to the crime and its circumstances and the character of the criminal." Smith, 922 P.2d at 848-49. There is no tangible indication that Mr. Wilks had the propensity to commit this type of crime either in his criminal record or in any character description of him. However, looking to the seriousness of the crime committed, we acknowledge this was a horrific and violent crime-one that tragically ended a human life. By his own account, he summoned the victim to his home to deliver a pizza, became upset when she complained about the paucity of his tip, and shot her in the face. Although Mr. Wilks asks us to examine other second-degree murder sentences, we abide by our prior decision not to consider the sentences imposed on similarly situated defendants except in cases where the mode of punishment is unusual or the relative length of a sentence to imprisonment is extreme when compared to the gravity of the offense. Oakley v. State, 715 P.2d 1374, 1379 (Wyo. 1986). In this case, Mr. Wilks' sentence is wholly consistent with the severity of the crime and its attendant circumstances.
[ ] The trial court had the opportunity to examine the presentence investigation report and, at the sentencing hearing, to listen to evidence and argument including a detention officer's testimony, counsel's recommendations, victim impact statements, and Mr. Wilks' and his family's statements. Given the information presented and the gravity of the crime, we conclude the trial court did not act in a manner which exceeded the bounds of reason under the circumstances and did not abuse its discretion. Upon review, therefore, we will not disturb its sentencing decision.
CONCLUSION
[ ] While we recognize certain errors were made at trial, a complete review of the record and the issues presented assures us that Mr. Wilks received a fair trial and the verdict would have been unchanged had the errors not occurred.
[ ] Affirmed.
Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Wyoming DUI Attorneys
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