State v. Hurt

EDMUNDS, Justice.

In our reconsideration of this matter, we limit our review to the sentencing procedure followed by the trial court. When defendant entered a plea of guilty to second-degree murder, his attorney argued that the court should find certain mitigating factors and reject aggravating factors proposed by the State. The trial court imposed an aggravated sentence without submitting the aggravating factors to the jury. Because we hold that the arguments of defendant’s counsel in mitigation did not constitute an admission that the offense was especially heinous, atrocious, or cruel, the…