State v. Ellison

This case demonstrates the problems associated with blind application of habitual offender laws by our sentencing courts. In this case, Willie J. Ellison, Jr., pled guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute heroin and another count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine. According to the terms of the plea agreement, Mr. Ellison was advised that if he appeared for sentencing on September 22, 2010, and registered with the home incarceration office in the interim, he would receive two concurrent 15-year sentences as a second-felony offender. However, if Mr. Ellison…