Opinion ID: 1122720
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Motion to Continue Sentencing Hearing

Text: Defendant also contends that the trial court abused its discretion in failing to continue the sentencing hearing to some future date. We agree. The initial sentencing hearing was scheduled to commence at 10:00 a.m. on November 7, 1980. Defense counsel received a copy of the presentence report at 8:30 a.m. that day. He promptly informed the court that he was surprised that the probation department and the prosecution recommended the imposition of an enhanced sentence. He then moved for a continuance of the sentencing hearing to discuss the report with his client and to marshal evidence. He also requested more specific notice of the reasons why an aggravated sentence was recommended. The trial court postponed the hearing until 1:30 p.m. that day. At the commencement of the afternoon hearing, defense counsel informed the trial court that he had not had sufficient time to obtain character evidence, to investigate certain statements in the presentence report attributed to defendant's prior parole officer, or to discover and present statistics concerning other enhanced sentences imposed in the jurisdiction. Section 16-11-102(1), C.R.S.1973 (1978 Repl.Vol. 8) (1982 Cum.Supp.), of the criminal sentencing statute requires the preparation of a presentence report prior to the imposition of any sentence, and states: Within a reasonable time prior to sentencing, copies of the presentence report ... shall be furnished to the prosecuting attorney and defense counsel or to the defendant if he is unrepresented. [4] Section 16-11-102(5) requires the trial court, prior to imposing punishment, to permit the defendant to make a statement in his own behalf and to present any information in mitigation of punishment. See also Crim.P. 32(b). The information and recommendations presented to a trial court by its probation department in connection with sentencing hearings are of great importance to the trial judge's ultimate sentencing decision. See Wolford v. People, 178 Colo. 203, 496 P.2d 1011 (1972). The information articulated in such report necessarily is often of a hearsay nature. Such reports also contain references to interviews with the subject defendant about the offense and other pertinent matters. The report is not designed to further the sentencing interests of either the prosecution or the defendant; rather, it is in the nature of an evaluation and recommendation by an impartial expert in the field of effective sentencing alternatives. In recognition of the important role accorded the conclusions of the evaluators preparing such report, the statutory and rule provisions require a defendant to be given a reasonable opportunity prior to the imposition of sentence to correct or supplement the information contained therein and to rebut sentencing recommendations based thereon. Wolford v. People, supra . See also United States v. Needles, 472 F.2d 652 (2d Cir.1973); Dorsey v. Willis, 242 Ga. 316, 249 S.E.2d 28 (1978). Such provisions are necessary to ensure meaningful participation by the defendant in the sentencing process. In this case, the presentence report was not furnished to defendant within a sufficiently reasonable time prior to the sentencing hearing to permit adequate participation by defendant in such hearing. It contained factual material which defendant contends was both inaccurate and irrelevant. The brief postponement did not provide defendant a reasonable opportunity to present character evidence in mitigation of punishment, as required under the statute, in view of the fact that some of the witnesses deemed necessary by defendant to rebut matters contained in the report resided outside the county in which the trial was held. The practice of issuing a presentence report to counsel immediately prior to sentencing too often requires delay in sentencing proceedings to avoid prejudice to the defendant; it is not to be encouraged. Here, the trial court's refusal to continue the sentencing hearing to another day unduly abridged defendant's rights to present evidence in rebuttal to the information and recommendations contained in the presentence report. Accordingly, his sentence must be vacated and the case remanded for resentencing after a full sentencing hearing. In view of this decision, we do not address defendant's contentions that the sentence must be vacated because the trial court failed to distinguish between aggravating and extraordinarily aggravating circumstances in the findings of fact articulated in support of the imposition of a sentence in excess of the presumptive range. The judgment of conviction is affirmed. The sentence is vacated and the cause is remanded for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.