State v. McNeal

¶1 In a previous appeal, we remanded to the trial court for resentencing based on Blakely v. Washington, 542 U.S. 296, 124 S. Ct. 2531, 159 L. Ed. 2d 403 (2004). We later accepted discretionary review1 when the sentencing court certified to us the following question: “Whether the [sentencing] Court [on remand] has jurisdiction to impanel a jury pursuant to RCW 9.94A.537(2) for the purpose of considering an aggravating factor not specifically contained in RCW 9.94A.535(3).” Clerk’s Papers (CP) at 15. Defendant John McNeal argues that if the sentencing court lacked the authority to impanel a…