Opinion ID: 2374905
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: Eighth AmendmentCruel and Unusual Punishment

Text: [¶ 47] Appellant next contends that imposing consecutive sentences of 12 to 20 years for two counts of aggravated vehicular homicide is cruel and unusual punishment. He argues that this sentence is disproportionate to the offense, yet he acknowledges that the same sentence was given for the same offense in Allen, 43 P.3d 551. The maximum penalty for each conviction under the vehicular homicide statute is 20 years. Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 6-2-106(b). [¶ 48] This Court has rejected the common-law view that a sentence is not subject to appellate review if it is within the minimum and maximum limits set by statute. Sampsell v. State, 2001 WY 12, ¶ 6, 17 P.3d 724, 726 (Wyo.2001). Instead, when the imposition of a criminal sentence is within the limits set by the legislature, we review the sentencing decision for an abuse of discretion. Id. In the context of sentencing decisions, this standard of review has been described as follows: A sentence will not be disturbed because of sentencing procedures unless the defendant can show an abuse of discretion, procedural conduct prejudicial to him, and circumstances which manifest inherent unfairness and injustice, or conduct which offends the public sense of fair play. Smith v. State, 922 P.2d 846, 848 (Wyo.1996) (quoting Wright v. State, 670 P.2d 1090, 1092 (Wyo.1983)). [¶ 49] The United States Supreme Court recently revisited its Eighth Amendment jurisprudence in Graham v. Florida, ___ U.S. ___, 130 S.Ct. 2011, 2021, 176 L.Ed.2d 825, 835 (2010): The Eighth Amendment states: Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted. To determine whether a punishment is cruel and unusual, courts must look beyond historical conceptions to `the evolving standards of decency that mark the progress of a maturing society.' Estelle v. Gamble, 429 U.S. 97, 102, 97 S.Ct. 285, [290,] 50 L.Ed.2d 251 (1976) (quoting Trop v. Dulles, 356 U.S. 86, 101, 78 S.Ct. 590, [598,] 2 L.Ed.2d 630 (1958) (plurality opinion)). This is because `[t]he standard of extreme cruelty is not merely descriptive, but necessarily embodies a moral judgment. The standard itself remains the same, but its applicability must change as the basic mores of society change.' Kennedy v. Louisiana, 554 U.S. 407, 419, 128 S.Ct. 2641, 2649, 171 L.Ed.2d 525, 538 (2008) (quoting Furman v. Georgia, 408 U.S. 238, 382, 92 S.Ct. 2726, [2800,] 33 L.Ed.2d 346 (1972) (Burger, C.J., dissenting)). The Cruel and Unusual Punishments Clause prohibits the imposition of inherently barbaric punishments under all circumstances. See, e.g., Hope v. Pelzer, 536 U.S. 730, 122 S.Ct. 2508, 153 L.Ed.2d 666 (2002). [P]unishments of torture, for example, are forbidden. Wilkerson v. Utah, 99 U.S. 130, 136, 25 L.Ed. 345 (1879). These cases underscore the essential principle that, under the Eighth Amendment, the State must respect the human attributes even of those who have committed serious crimes. For the most part, however, the Court's precedents consider punishments challenged not as inherently barbaric but as disproportionate to the crime. The concept of proportionality is central to the Eighth Amendment. Embodied in the Constitution's ban on cruel and unusual punishments is the precept of justice that punishment for crime should be graduated and proportioned to [the] offense. Weems v. United States, 217 U.S. 349, 367, 30 S.Ct. 544, [549,] 54 L.Ed. 793 (1910). In Solem v. Helm, the U.S. Supreme Court adopted the following proportionality analysis, which the Wyoming Supreme Court has followed since Oakley v. State, 715 P.2d 1374, 1376-77 (Wyo.1986): In sum, a court's proportionality analysis under the Eighth Amendment should be guided by objective criteria, including (i) the gravity of the offense and the harshness of the penalty; (ii) the sentences imposed on other criminals in the same jurisdiction; and (iii) the sentences imposed for commission of the same crime in other jurisdictions. Solem, 463 U.S. 277, 292, 103 S.Ct. 3001, 3011, 77 L.Ed.2d 637 (1983). In Oakley, we stated that a proportionality analysis under Solem is only necessary where the sentence is grossly disproportionate to the crime. We will not engage in a lengthy analysis under all three of the Solem criteria, including a consideration of the sentences imposed on similarly situated defendants in this and other jurisdictions, except in cases where the mode of punishment is unusual or where the relative length of sentence to imprisonment is extreme when compared to the gravity of the offense (the first of the Solem criteria). Oakley's sentence does not merit that kind of in-depth Solem analysis, and the Solem opinion does not require that kind of analysis in a case such as this. Oakley, 715 P.2d at 1379. In subsequent cases, we reiterated this principle, stating: Our rule is in accord with the approach taken by the United States Supreme Court in Harmelin v. Michigan, where the court concluded that the Solem proportionality analysis is appropriate only in the rare case in which a threshold comparison of the crime committed and the sentence imposed leads to an inference of gross disproportionality. [ Harmelin ], 501 U.S. 957, 1005, 111 S.Ct. 2680, 2707, 115 L.Ed.2d 836 (1991) (Kennedy, J., concurring). Dodge v. State, 951 P.2d 383, 385 (Wyo. 1997). This application of Oakley is still followed by this Court. Suval v. State, 6 P.3d 1272, 1274 (Wyo.2000). Sampsell, ¶ 10, 17 P.3d at 728. See also Graham, 130 S.Ct. at 2021 (the Eighth Amendment proportionality principle forbids only extreme sentences that are `grossly disproportionate' to the crime). [¶ 50] In this case, we do not need to engage in a proportionality analysis because the length of Appellant's sentence is not extreme or unusual when compared to the gravity of the offense. Instead, we will use our standard rubric for assessing the reasonableness of the sentence, which gives consideration to the crime, its circumstances, and the character of the defendant. Frederick v. State, 2007 WY 27, ¶ 32, 151 P.3d 1136, 1146 (Wyo.2007). In its sentencing decision, the district court noted that Appellant had a blood-alcohol content that was over three times the legal limit at the time of the accident. The court noted that Appellant had a chronic history of alcohol and substance abuse that went untreated for decades, as well as a history of convictions for drunk-driving related offenses without any apparent attempt on his part to correct this behavior. Finally, the court considered the fact that Appellant's conduct resulted in the deaths of two people. The district court did not abuse its discretion in the sentencing decision in light of its careful consideration of the circumstances surrounding the crime and the character of Appellant.