2013 District of Columbia Code
Division I — GOVERNMENT OF DISTRICT
Title 3 — DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS
Subtitle I — GENERAL
Chapter 1 — ADVISORY COMMISSION ON SENTENCING
Section 3-101 — District of Columbia Sentencing and Criminal Code Revision Commission.

(a) The District of Columbia Sentencing and Criminal Code Revision Commission ("Commission") is established as an independent agency within the District of Columbia government, consistent with the meaning of the term "independent agency" as provided in § 1-603.01(13).
(b) In addition to the duties required under § 3-101.01, the Commission shall perform the following duties:
(1) Promulgate, implement, and revise a system of voluntary sentencing guidelines for use in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia designed to achieve the goals of certainty, consistency, and adequacy of punishment, with due regard for the:
(A) Seriousness of the offense;
(B) Dangerousness of the offender;
(C) Need to protect the safety of the community;
(D) Offender's potential for rehabilitation; and
(E) Use of alternatives to prison, where appropriate;
(2) Publish a manual containing the instructions for applying the voluntary guidelines, update the manual periodically, and provide ongoing technical assistance to the court and practitioners on sentencing and sentencing guideline issues;
(3) Review and analyze pertinent sentencing data and, where the information has not been provided in a particular case, ask the judge to specify the factors upon which he or she relied in departing from the guideline recommendations or for imposing what appears to be a noncompliant sentence;
(4) Conduct focus groups, community outreach, training, and other activities designed to collect and disseminate information about the guidelines;
(5) Review and research sentencing policies and practices locally and nationally, and make recommendations to increase the fairness and effectiveness of sentences in the District of Columbia; and
(6) Consult with other District of Columbia, federal, and state agencies that are affected by or address sentencing issues.
(c) The Commission is designated as a criminal justice agency for purposes of accessing offender and sentencing related data required to perform the duties specified under this chapter.

History
(Oct. 16, 1998, D.C. Law 12-167, § 2, 45 DCR 5180; Oct. 3, 2001, D.C. Law 14-28, § 3802(a), 48 DCR 6981; Sept. 30, 2004, D.C. Law 15-190, § 2(a), 51 DCR 6737; June 16, 2006, D.C. Law 16-126, § 2(a), 53 DRC 4709; Oct. 18, 2007, D.C. Law 17-25, § 2(a), 54 DCR 8014; Sept. 20, 2012, D.C. Law 19-168, § 3032(a), 59 DCR 8025.)

Annotations
Prior Codifications. 1981 Ed., § 2-4201.

Effect of Amendments. D.C. Law 14-28 rewrote subsec. (a) which had read as follows: "(a) There is established the Advisory Commission on Sentencing ('Commission')."
D.C. Law 15-190, in the section heading and in subsec. (a), substituted "District of Columbia Sentencing Commission" for "Advisory Commission on Sentencing".
D.C. Law 16-126, in section heading, substituted "Sentencing and Criminal Code Revision Commission" for "Sentencing Commission"; in subsec. (a), substituted "Sentencing and Criminal Code Revision Commission" for "Sentencing Commission"; and, in subsec. (b), substituted "In addition to the duties required under § 3-101.01, the Commission" for "The Commission".
D.C. Law 17-25 rewrote subsec. (b).
The 2012 amendment by D.C. Law 19-168 added (c).

Emergency Legislation. For temporary (90 day) amendment of section, see § 3402(a) of Fiscal Year 2002 Budget Support Emergency Act of 2001 (D.C. Act 14-124, August 3, 2001, 48 DCR 7861).
For temporary (90 day) amendment of section, see § 2(a) of Advisory Commission on Sentencing Structured Sentencing System Pilot Program Emergency Amendment Act of 2004 (D.C. Act 15-437, May 21, 2004, 51 DCR 5957).
For temporary (90 day) amendment of section, see § 2(a) of Advisory Commission on Sentencing Structured Sentencing System Pilot Program Congressional Review Emergency Amendment Act of 2004 (D.C. Act 15-510, August 2, 2004, 51 DCR 8967).
For temporary (90 day) amendment of section, see § 2(a) of District of Columbia Sentencing and Criminal Code Revision Commission Emergency Amendment Act of 2007 (D.C. Act 17-72, July 20, 2007, 54 DCR 7401).

Legislative History of Law 12-167. Law 12-167, the "Advisory Commission on Sentencing Establishment Act of 1998," was introduced in Council and assigned Bill No. 12-550, which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. The Bill was adopted on first and second readings on June 2, 1998, and June 16, 1998, respectively. Signed by the Mayor on July 1, 1998, it was assigned Act No. 12-410 and transmitted to both Houses of Congress for its review. D.C. Law 12-167 became effective on October 16, 1998.

Legislative History of Law 14-28. Law 14-28, the "Fiscal Year 2002 Budget Support Act of 2001", was introduced in Council and assigned Bill No. 14-144, which was referred to the Committee Of the Whole. The Bill was adopted on first and second readings on May 1, 2001, and June 5, 2001, respectively. Signed by the Mayor on June 29, 2001, it was assigned Act No. 14-85 and transmitted to both Houses of Congress for its review. D.C. Law 14-28 became effective on October 3, 2001.

Legislative History of Law 15-190. Law 15-190, the "Advisory Commission on Sentencing Structured Sentencing System Pilot Program Amendment Act of 2004", was introduced in Council and assigned Bill No. 15-711, which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. The Bill was adopted on first and second readings on May 4, 2004, and June 1, 2004, respectively. Signed by the Mayor on June 23, 2004, it was assigned Act No. 15-457 and transmitted to both Houses of Congress for its review. D.C. Law 15-190 became effective on September 30, 2004.

Legislative History of Law 16-126. Law 16-126, the "Advisory Commission on Sentencing Amendment Act of 2006", was introduced in Council and assigned Bill No. 16-172 which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. The Bill was adopted on first and second readings on March 7, 2006, and April 4, 2006, respectively. Signed by the Mayor on April 21, 2006, it was assigned Act No. 16-344 and transmitted to both Houses of Congress for its review. D.C. Law 16-126 became effective on June 16, 2006.

Legislative History of Law 17-25. Law 17-25, the "District of Columbia Sentencing and Criminal Code Revision Commission Amendment Act of 2007", was introduced in Council and assigned Bill No. 17-137 which was referred to the Committee on Public Safety and Judiciary. The Bill was adopted on first and second readings on June 21, 2007, and July 10, 2007, respectively. Signed by the Mayor on July 25, 2007, it was assigned Act No. 17-87 and transmitted to both Houses of Congress for its review. D.C. Law 17-25 became effective on October 18, 2007.

Legislative History of Law 19-168. Law 19-168, the "Fiscal Year 2013 Budget Support Act of 2012," was introduced in Council and assigned Bill No. 19-743. The Bill was adopted on first and second readings on May 15, 2012, and June 5, 2012, respectively. Signed by the Mayor on June 22, 2012, it was assigned Act No. 19-385 and transmitted to Congress for its review. D.C. Law 19-168 became effective on September 20, 2012.

Editor's Notes Applicability: Section 4 of D.C. Law 16-126 provided: 'This act shall apply as of January 1, 2007."