Opinion ID: 2464115
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: Amendments ordered by the district court

Text: The district court directed respondents to discuss possible PSI corrections with Stockmeier. Subsequently, based on the parties' agreement, the district court ordered certain amendments to the PSI. On cross-appeal, respondents contend that the district court lacked authority to order such amendments. We agree. The district court's final statutory duty with regard to a defendant's PSI is to cause a copy of the report to be transmitted to the Director of the Department of Corrections once the defendant is sentenced, NRS 176.159(1), and, as with the Division, nothing in Nevada law gives the district court express, implied, or inherent authority to amend a prisoner's PSI post-sentencing. [4] See generally NRS 176.133-.159; NRS 213.1071-.1078; NRS 213.1092-.10988. Because Nevada law does not provide any administrative or judicial scheme for amending a PSI after the defendant is sentenced, it is imperative that a defendant contest his PSI at the time of sentencing if he believes that his PSI contains inaccuracies. We recognize that the process by which the district court must resolve objections to a PSI is not entirely clear. Apart from requiring the Division to give the defendant an opportunity to object to his PSI, NRS 176.156(1), the Nevada statutes are silent as to the process to be followed by either the Division or the district court for allowing the defendant to make such objections, or for resolving the objections, and communicating the resolution to interested parties. [5] In the absence of any post-sentencing authority of either the Division or the district court to address alleged inaccuracies in a PSI, any objections must be resolved prior to sentencing, and, if not resolved in the defendant's favor, the objections must be raised on direct appeal. We emphasize that even if disputed factual statements do not affect a defendant's sentence, any significant inaccuracy could follow a defendant into the prison system and be used to determine his classification, placement in certain programs, and eligibility for parole, and thus, the defendant must promptly seek to correct any alleged inaccuracies to prevent the Department of Corrections from relying on a PSI that could not later be changed. [6] See NRS 176.159(1); see also United States Dept. of Justice v. Julian, 486 U.S. 1, 5-6, 108 S.Ct. 1606, 100 L.Ed.2d 1 (1988) (noting that PSIs are used for determining status of an inmate, choosing treatment programs, deciding eligibility for privileges, and making parole decisions). Additionally, to allow a defendant to wait and challenge a PSI in a later action would open courts to a flood of litigation from prisoners seeking amendments to their PSIs long after being sentenced. Limiting such actions is important because the passage of time erodes the reliability of factual determinations, as evidence can become stale and witnesses may become unavailable. Here, Stockmeier took advantage of the opportunity to object to his PSI at sentencing. When the district court did not address the objections, however, Stockmeier failed to seek a ruling from the district court as to the disputed issues, and he failed to raise these issues on direct appeal in order to give this court an opportunity to address the allegations. Therefore, Stockmeier waived his opportunity to have the alleged inaccuracies addressed. Because the district court did not have any post-sentencing authority to order the amendments to Stockmeier's PSI, we reverse the portion of the district court's judgment ordering such amendments. [7]