Opinion
No. COA14–1012.
03-17-2015
STATE of North Carolina v. Christopher Michael REXACH.
Attorney General Roy Cooper, by Special Deputy Attorney General Elizabeth Leonard McKay, for the State. Geeta N. Kapur for Defendant–Appellant.
Attorney General Roy Cooper, by Special Deputy Attorney General Elizabeth Leonard McKay, for the State.
Geeta N. Kapur for Defendant–Appellant.
McGEE, Chief Judge.
Christopher Michael Rexach (“Defendant”) pled guilty to the following charges on 20 April 2011:(1) possession of cocaine; (2) delivery of cocaine; (3) sale of cocaine; (4) maintaining a dwelling for the keeping and selling of controlled substances; and (5) having attained habitual felon status. The plea agreement provided that “[a]ll cases shall be consolidated for one Habitual Felon sentence of 120–153 months.” The trial court determined that Defendant had 19 prior record level points, placing him at prior record level VI. The trial court consolidated all offenses for judgment and sentenced Defendant to an active prison term of a minimum of 120 months and a maximum of 153 months. This Court allowed Defendant's petition for writ of certiorari to review the judgment on 7 August 2013.
Defendant contends the trial court erred in calculating his prior record level points and prior record level. He argues the trial court did not correctly classify two convictions, and as a consequence, his total points should have been reduced by three points, and his prior record level lowered from VI to V. Assuming, arguendo,the alleged errors were made, we conclude Defendant has not shown prejudicial error.
“This Court applies a harmless error analysis to improper calculations of prior record level points.” State v. Lindsay, 185 N.C.App. 314, 315, 647 S.E.2d 473, 474 (2007) (citations omitted). An error in the calculation of a defendant's prior record level points is deemed harmless if the sentence imposed by the trial court is within the range provided for the correct prior record level. State v. Ledwell, 171 N.C.App. 314, 321, 614 S.E.2d 562, 567 (2005). The record in this case shows that Defendant committed all of the charged offenses in the year 2010. A Class C felony committed between 1 December 2009 and 30 November 2011 is punishable within the presumptive range of minimum sentences for conviction level V to 101 to 127 months. N.C. Gen.Stat. § 15A–1340.17(c) (2009). The corresponding maximum sentences for this range is 131 to 162 months. N.C. Gen.Stat. § 15A–1340.17(e) (2009). Defendant's sentence of a minimum of 120 months and a maximum of 153 months, for which he bargained under the terms of the plea agreement, falls within those ranges.
Affirmed.
Judges STEPHENS and HUNTER, JR. concur.
Report per Rule 30(e).
Opinion
On writ of certiorari from judgment entered 20 April 2011 by Judge Jack W. Jenkins in Superior Court, Onslow County. Heard in the Court of Appeals 2 March 2015.