Opinion ID: 1991128
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: The Two-Year Probation Period Imposed by the Superior Court

Text: [¶ 5] Briggs contends, and the State concedes, that the imposition of a two-year period of probation exceeded the maximum possible probationary period for a Class D offense in the absence of proof beyond a reasonable doubt that the crime involved domestic violence. [2] As a result, the probation period should be reduced to one year, the statutory maximum allowed for Class D crimes pursuant to 17-A M.R.S.A. § 1202(1). In Hodgkins, the defendant was charged with assaulting the mother of his child, and as in this case, the charging instrument did not allege that the crime involved domestic violence. Hodgkins, 2003 ME 57, ¶ 6, 822 A.2d at 1192. We concluded that the trial court lacked the authority to increase the period of probation from one year to two years of probation without proof beyond a reasonable doubt that the crime involved domestic violence. Id. ¶ 9, 822 A.2d at 1192. Because the statute only authorizes a maximum probation period of one year unless the State proves beyond a reasonable doubt that the crime involved domestic violence, the court's imposition of a two-year term of probation is illegal on its face, and must be vacated.