Summary
The Vermont Supreme Court affirmed William Kimmick’s sentence for voluntary manslaughter. The court held that allowing unsworn victim-impact testimony and testimony from a family friend did not constitute reversible plain error, particularly because the defendant failed to object or show prejudice. It also held that a fourteen-to-fifteen-year sentence was lawful even though good-time credits could make the effective terms the same, because the statutory sentencing terms were not identical when imposed.
Topics
Practice areas
Questions Presented
- Whether permitting unsworn victim-impact testimony at sentencing constituted plain error or violated defendant's right not to be sentenced on materially untrue information.
- Whether permitting the victim's sister's fiancé and family friend, who was not a statutory family member or victim, to testify at sentencing constituted plain error.
- Whether a sentence with imposed minimum and maximum terms of fourteen and fifteen years became illegal because good-time credits could make the effective terms the same.
Holdings
- The district court did not commit plain error by permitting unsworn victim-impact testimony where the defendant failed to object, identified no materially untrue testimony, and showed no prejudice or connection between the testimony and the sentence imposed.
- Permitting the victim's sister's fiancé and longtime family friend to testify did not warrant reversal because, even if the testimony was erroneous, defendant failed to object and failed to show that the testimony was irrelevant, inadmissible, or prejudicial.
- A sentence is not unlawfully fixed under 13 V.S.A. § 7031 merely because good-time credits may reduce the maximum term so that the effective maximum and minimum terms become the same; the imposed terms themselves need only be nonidentical.
Key quotations
“A sentence is not fixed as long as the maximum and minimum terms are not identical.” (492)
“The district court followed the statute's directive in imposing a sentence of fourteen to fifteen years.” (493)
“For these reasons, defendant's sentence of fourteen to fifteen years was not inconsistent with the statutes in effect at the time of his sentencing and is therefore lawful.” (494)
Factual background
Kimmick pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter of his ex-wife. At sentencing, the district court permitted three witnesses to provide unsworn victim-impact testimony, including the victim's mother, sister, and the sister's fiancé, a longtime family friend; defense counsel did not object or request that the witnesses be sworn. The court imposed a straight sentence of fourteen to fifteen years, and a Department of Corrections witness explained the operation of good-time credits.
Procedural history
Kimmick pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter under a plea agreement that left sentencing to a contested hearing. The district court imposed a straight sentence of fourteen to fifteen years. Kimmick challenged the use of unsworn victim-impact testimony, the testimony of a nonvictim family friend, and the assertedly illegal effect of good-time credits on the sentence. The Supreme Court of Vermont affirmed.