State v. Thompkins

*1253Writ granted; case remanded. Defendant received a 45-year sentence under the Habitual Offender Law for an obscenity conviction.1 While in no way downplaying the severity of his offense, we are constrained to find that the sentence violates the prohibition against excessive punishment.

To be sure, the court recognizes the offensiveness of the defendant's conduct and recognizes the state's statutory authority to pursue enhanced punishments for recidivists like defendant. Indeed, he deserved to be penalized for violating a law that serves the important purpose, in this context, of protecting a…