How do the Sentencing Guidelines work?
Minnesota’s guidelines recommend sentences based first on the seriousness of the offense and second on the criminal record of the offender. Offenders who are convicted of similar crimes and have similar criminal backgrounds are to receive similar sentences. Offenders who commit the most serious and violent offenses or have more extensive criminal records are to receive the harshest sentences.
The Minnesota Sentencing Guidelines Commission provides an explanation at: http://www.msgc.state.mn.us/Text%20Only/what_are_the_guidelines.htm#q4. The Sentencing Guidelines themselves can also be found through this site at: http://www.msgc.state.mn.us/Text%20Only/sentencing_guidelines.htm The heart of the sentencing guidelines is the grid. Two useful features for finding the severity level of a certain crime to plug into this grid are the Offense Severity Table (arranged by severity level) and the numerical reference of felony statutes, which allows you to look up the severity level of a statute by its number. The Minnesota House of Representatives Research Department has prepared a handy chart of the Sentencing Process for a Felony Offense. [Return to Top of Page] • What do minors and adults dating minors need to know about sex and the law? The Legislative Reference Library’s resource guide, “Legal Age in Minnesota,” located at http://www.leg.state.mn.us/lrl/issues/legalage.asp, disse
