Kansas Statutes 21-6807. Crime severity scale for nondrug crimes, application to specific crimes; ranking offenses, provision; unranked offenses; unclassified felonies; prior convictions discovered after the plea
(a) The crime severity scale contained in the sentencing guidelines grid for nondrug crimes as provided in Kan. Stat. Ann. § 21-6804, and amendments thereto, consists of 10 levels of crimes. Crimes listed within each level are considered to be relatively equal in severity. Level 1 crimes are the most severe crimes and level 10 crimes are the least severe crimes. If a person is convicted of two or more crimes, then the severity level shall be determined by the most severe crime of conviction.
(b) When the statutory definition of a crime includes a broad range of criminal conduct, the crime may be subclassified factually in more than one crime category to capture the full range of criminal conduct covered by the crime.
Terms Used In Kansas Statutes 21-6807
- Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
- Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
- Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
- Nolo contendere: No contest-has the same effect as a plea of guilty, as far as the criminal sentence is concerned, but may not be considered as an admission of guilt for any other purpose.
- Plea: In a criminal case, the defendant's statement pleading "guilty" or "not guilty" in answer to the charges, a declaration made in open court.
- Sentencing guidelines: A set of rules and principles established by the United States Sentencing Commission that trial judges use to determine the sentence for a convicted defendant. Source: U.S. Courts
(c) The provisions of this subsection shall be applicable with regard to ranking offenses according to the crime severity scale as provided in this section:
(1) When considering an unranked offense in relation to the crime severity scale, the sentencing judge should refer to comparable offenses on the crime severity scale.
(2) Except for off-grid felony crimes, which are classified as person felonies, all felony crimes omitted from the crime severity scale shall be considered nonperson felonies.
(3) All unclassified felonies shall be scored as level 10 nonperson crimes.
(4) The offense severity level of a crime for which the court has accepted a plea of guilty or nolo contendere pursuant to Kan. Stat. Ann. § 22-3210, and amendments thereto, or of a crime of which the defendant has been convicted shall not be elevated or enhanced for sentencing purposes as a result of the discovery of prior convictions or any other basis for such enhancement subsequent to the acceptance of the plea or conviction. Any such prior convictions discovered after the plea has been accepted by the court shall be counted in the determination of the criminal history of the offender.