State v. Clarke

¶1

Cox, C.J.

— Except for prior convictions, “any fact that increases the penalty for a crime beyond the prescribed statutory maximum must be submitted to a jury, and proved beyond a reasonable doubt.”1 The “statutory maximum” for this purpose is the maximum sentence a judge may impose “solely on the basis of the facts reflected in the jury verdict or admitted by the defendant.”2 But judges may make factual findings that increase a defendant’s minimum sentence so long as that sentence does not exceed the statutory maximum for the crime.3

¶2 Here, we must decide whether the indeterminate…