State v. Montgomery

KELLY, Judge.

The State appeals from the sentence imposed on Clay Montgomery after he entered a plea to aggravated battery. The State argues that no evidence was presented of the victim’s need for restitution to support a downward departure from the recommended guidelines range. We agree and reverse.

Before trial of the case commenced, the parties engaged in unsuccessful plea negotiations. The State offered Montgomery a cap of four years in prison, which Montgomery rejected. Thereafter, Montgomery’s defense counsel, the victim, and the victim’s civil lawyer negotiated “a settlement” in which…