State v. Graham
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The Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the court of appeals in this criminal sentencing case, holding that there was no error in the determination that Defendant's out-of-state conviction may be counted as an elevated felony classification for purposes of sentencing in North Carolina trial courts, as set forth in State v. Sanders, 367 N.C. 716 (2014).
Defendant was found guilty of one count of sexual offense with a child by an adult. In sentencing Defendant, the trial court treated Defendant's Georgia statutory rape conviction as a Class B1 felony because the court regarding the Georgia statute under which Defendant was convicted was similar to North Carolina's statutory rape statute. The court of appeals affirmed, holding that the trial court did not err as to finding substantial similarity between the Georgia and North Carolina statutes. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the court of appeals properly applied the comparative elements test in affirming the trial court's consideration of Defendant's previous Georgia conviction for statutory rape as equivalent to a North Carolina Class B1 felony for the purpose of the calculation of prior record level points in criminal sentencing.
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