“Will I go to jail?” One might find themselves asking such questions if they happen to be arrested for a felony. However, authorities have undergone certain procedures to determine if you will be put in jail.
If a person commits a felony offense, a point system is utilized for sentencing a felony case. Florida Criminal Punishment Code (CPC) uses a point system to determine sentencing for felony offenses. This system evaluates sentencing scores that determine the minimum sentence based on the severity of the crime and other factors related to the defendant's criminal history and the nature of the offense.
The Criminal Punishment Code states that there is a point system involving offense levels between 1 and 10 assigned for every felony offense, and the numbers carry a point value. The higher the offense level, the more serious the crime committed.
Aside from assigning offense levels, crimes such as legal status violations, firearm possession, and victim injury are additional points included in the CPC assessment.
Overall, the Florida Criminal Punishment Code utilizes the Scoresheet Preparation Manual. The point value constitutes the person's crime, if the total points equate to 44 points or more, the person will be scoring prison or will serve a mandatory prison sentence.
On the other hand, if the person obtained below 44 points, or was convicted for chronic substance abuse, the person is qualified for probation or community control.
Florida Statute 948.20 states that a judge can sentence probation instead of prison to a convicted drug offender despite a non-violent felony under the Criminal Punishment Code score of less than 60 points but is proven of chronic substance abuse.
| Offense Level | Primary Offense Point Value | Additional Offense Point Value | Prior Record Point Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | 4 | 0.7 | 0.5 |
| Level 2 | 10 | 1.2 | 0.8 |
| Level 3 | 16 | 2.4 | 0.7 |
| Level 4 | 22 | 3.6 | 2.4 |
| Level 5 | 28 | 5.4 | 3.6 |
| Level 6 | 36 | 18 | 9 |
| Level 7 | 56 | 28 | 14 |
| Level 8 | 74 | 37 | 19 |
| Level 9 | 92 | 46 | 23 |
| Level 10 | 116 | 58 | 29 |
Legal authorities use Florida's criminal punishment scoresheet; the crimes are designated as Primary Offenses, Additional Offenses, and Prior Records at sentencing. These are the basis for what the person scores.
The highest offense level is the Primary Offense. If the person committed two crimes of the same offense level, one will be designated as the Primary Offense and the other as Additional Offense. If the person happens to have a criminal history, the record will be placed under Prior Record.
When the Primary Offense appears, the point value is higher than as an Additional Offense or Prior Record.
The number of points is then assigned and determined by the Offense Level of the Primary Offense, Additional Offenses, and Prior Record. The offenses are laced on the Criminal Punishment Code scoresheet.
In regards to the Offense Level points, the Criminal Punishment Code also considers additional points when certain conditions are involved:
Such situations frequently have the potential to greatly raise a person's final score.
The Primary Offense, Additional Offenses, Prior Record, and Additional Sentencing Factors are separately sub-totaled and then put together to establish an individual's point total and whether they get a jail sentence.
A person is eligible for community control or probation if their total score is fewer than 44 points and the calculation ends.
The minimum allowable jail sentence is determined by deducting 28 from the total number of points and multiplying the result by 0.75 if the total points is more than 44.
(Total: 28 Points) *.75 = Minimum Permissible Prison Sentence (Months)
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A 3rd-degree felony in Florida is equivalent to 16 points. That includes escaping or trying to avoid a patrol officer or criminal third conviction for DUI.
The Punishment Code has several offense levels for each criminal offense; the greater the offense level, the more points the offense carries. There are ten distinct offense levels, and a level 1 offense is worth four points, while a level 10 offense is worth 116 points.
A defendant is said to have "scored prison" if they have 44 or more points on the score sheet.
