North Carolina General Statutes 164-41. Classification of offenses – ranges of punishment
(a) The Commission shall classify criminal offenses into felony and misdemeanor categories on the basis of their severity.
(b) In determining the proper category for each felony and misdemeanor, the Commission shall consider, to the extent that they have relevance, the following:
(1) The nature and degree of harm likely to be caused by the offense, including whether it involves property, irreplaceable property, a person, number of persons, or a breach of the public trust;
Terms Used In North Carolina General Statutes 164-41
- Commission: means the North Carolina Sentencing and Policy Advisory Commission. See North Carolina General Statutes 164-35
- following: when used by way of reference to any section of a statute, shall be construed to mean the section next preceding or next following that in which such reference is made; unless when some other section is expressly designated in such reference. See North Carolina General Statutes 12-3
- property: shall include all property, both real and personal. See North Carolina General Statutes 12-3
- state: when applied to the different parts of the United States, shall be construed to extend to and include the District of Columbia and the several territories, so called; and the words "United States" shall be construed to include the said district and territories and all dependencies. See North Carolina General Statutes 12-3
(2) The deterrent effect a particular classification may have on the commission of the offense by others;
(3) The current incidence of the offense in the State as a whole;
(4) The rights of the victim.
(c) For each classification of felonies and misdemeanors formulated pursuant to subsection (b), the Commission shall assign a suggested range of punishment. The Commission shall take into consideration the current range of punishment for each offense. (1989 (Reg. Sess., 1990), c. 1076, s. 1; 1991 (Reg. Sess., 1992), c. 812, s. 12; c. 816, s. 1; 1993, c. 253, s. 5.1; c. 321, s. 200.1; 1993 (Reg. Sess., 1994), c. 591, s. 6(a); 1995, c. 236, s. 1; 1997-256, s. 6; 1997-347, s. 2; 1997-401, s. 2; 1997-418, s. 2; 1997-443, s. 18.6(a).)