Scenario 7:

Question : Defendant is charged with manslaughter in the second degree and is willing to plead to the charge if he can negotiate a favorable sentence. The district attorney initially proposes a state prison sentence of 1 to 3 years. Defendant wants to be placed on probation. The court suggests a one year determinate sentence in local jail. Defendant offers to serve a split sentence of six months jail and five years probation. All parties reach agreement this proposed sentence is just under the circumstances. May the proposed disposition be implemented?

Answer : No.

Surprisingly, although a straight probationary sentence is authorized for manslaughter in the second degree, if a sentence of imprisonment is imposed it must be an indeterminate State sentence. Thus, neither local time nor a split sentence is authorized.

GungaWeb handles the question like this:

Click on Article 125, then PL 125.15 to retrieve the charge. Scroll down to the Sentences function area, and click on Sentences to obtain a Sentencing Report as follows

Observe that the proposed disposition is unavailable. Further investigation would show that a plea to the lesser included offense of criminally negligent homicide, a class E felony, is permissible, and would permit imposition of the desired split sentence.

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