Court Opinion

ID: 9707973
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-26 02:26:17.769679+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:22:40.742535
License: Public Domain

DeBRULER, Justice,
concurring and dissenting.
The crime of rape is a class A felony if committed with the use of a deadly weapon. Unlike rape, the crimes of robbery, burglary, and arson are class B felonies when' committed with the use of a deadly weapon, and only ascend to the level of class A felony when bodily injury results to the victim by use of the weapon. Here the trial judge gave the maximum sentence of fifty years for rape, under circumstances where no bodily injury was inflicted upon the victim by the use of a deadly weapon. In the absence of findings of aggravating and extraordinary circumstances such as the existence of a prior record of convictions involving bodily injury to victims, or indicating that bodily injury by use of the weapon would have occurred in.the instant case but for some interruption of the crime, the extreme upper range of the statutory term of imprisonment provided for rape should be reserved for those convicted of rape which results in bodily injury by the use of a deadly weapon. Here the findings are silent regarding the infliction of bodily injury upon victims of past crimes, and indeed the record shows two prior convictions, one for forgery and one for second degree burglary. Appellant’s crime, while egregious, dangerous, and wholly outrageous, was not interrupted, but was of such a nature that it ran its tragic course without resulting in bodily injury through the use of the deadly weapons being wielded. Under these circumstances, I deem the findings of the trial judge of aggravating circumstances to be insufficient to support his meting out the very maximum possible sentence, and the sentence itself to be manifestly unreasonable. I would remand this case to the trial court with instructions to reduce the sentence.
By maintaining rational distinctions of this sort in the sentencing process, this Court can even add to the hoped-for protection which criminal statutes provide for potential victims.