Court Opinion

ID: 9522140
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-07 02:18:29.321857+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T13:02:20.051228
License: Public Domain

Dooley, J.,
¶ 47. dissenting in part. Given defendant’s failure to challenge the validity of the small difference between his minimum and maximum sentence, I find no reason to address this argument and respectfully dissent from Part IV of the foregoing decision.
¶ 48. On appeal, defendant’s sole challenge to his sentence is that in directing that his four-year-and-eleven-month-to-five-year sentence would all be suspended except five years, the court effectively imposed a fixed sentence in violation of 13 V.S.A. § 7031(a). Defendant specifically concedes that the slight difference between his maximum and minimum sentences is in accordance with this Court’s precedent and does not violate the statute because of the amount of the difference. The majority does not address the error defendant raises. Instead, the majority reverses on the theory expressly conceded by defendant: that the one-month differential between his minimum and maximum sentences contravenes the indeterminate sentencing law.
¶ 49. “[I]n all but a few exceptional instances, matters which are not briefed will not be considered on appeal.” State v. Settle, 141 Vt. 58, 61, 442 A.2d 1314, 1315 (1982). Certainly, this Court may affirm a trial court decision based on a rationale different from that employed by the parties or the trial court. See In re Handy, 171 Vt. 336, 343, 764 A.2d 1226, 1234 (2000) (explaining that this Court may affirm trial court on alternative grounds, even if not raised by parties). We should, however, be much more hesitant to *410employ novel theories to reverse the trial court, especially where defendant concedes the issue on appeal. Given the lack of argument and briefing on the validity of a one-month difference between a maximum and minimum sentence, I would decline to address this issue.