Overview
The Massachusetts Sentencing Commission (MSC) was established in 1994 by the “truth in sentencing” law, Chapter 432 of the Acts of 1993, which was revised and codified as Chapter 211E of the Massachusetts General Laws. MSC is within the judicial branch of state government but is separate and apart from the Trial Court. According to Sections 1 and 2 of Chapter 211E of the General Laws, the commission was created to recommend sentencing policies and practices for the Commonwealth. In accordance with Section 3(a)(1) of that chapter, any sentencing policies or guidelines established by MSC are only effective when they are enacted into law by the state Legislature.
MSC’s Report to the General Court dated April 10, 1996 states,
The mission of the Sentencing Commission is to promote truth in sentencing by formulating uniform sentencing policies, developing systematic sentencing guidelines, and integrating intermediate sanctions within the sentencing guidelines. The commission adopted a comprehensive approach in developing these sentencing policies and guidelines with respect to the range of offenses covered and the scope of sanctions included.
MSC has nine voting members and six non-voting members. All voting members, including the chair, are appointed by the Governor in accordance with Section 1(a) of Chapter 211E of the General Laws:
There is established, as an independent commission in the judicial branch of the commonwealth, a Massachusetts sentencing commission which shall consist of nine voting members and six non-voting members. The governor shall appoint the voting members of the commission, and shall designate one member as chairman. Three of the voting members shall be present district court, Boston municipal court or superior court department judges, selected from a list of seven judges recommended by the chief justice of the trial court, and at least one district court judge or Boston municipal court and one superior court judge shall be appointed. Two of the voting members shall be assistant district attorneys, selected from a list of seven assistant district attorneys recommended by the Massachusetts District Attorneys' Association. One of the voting members shall be an assistant attorney general, selected from a list of three assistant attorneys general recommended by the attorney general. Two of the voting members shall be members of the Massachusetts Association of Criminal Defense Attorneys, selected from a list of five such members recommended by the Massachusetts Association of Criminal Defense Attorneys. One voting member shall be a public defender, selected from a list of three public defenders recommended by the committee for public counsel services. The non-voting members shall be the commissioner of corrections, or his designee; the commissioner of probation, or his designee; and the secretary of public safety, or his designee; the chairman of the Massachusetts parole board, or his designee; the president of the Massachusetts Sheriffs Association or his designee; a victim witness advocate selected by the victim witness board.
In 2014, the Governor appointed a new MSC chair. At that time, MSC began developing new proposed sentencing guidelines for all criminal offenses. In addition to the standard criminal history and offense level, the new guidelines take into consideration disparate racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic impacts when considering sentencing. On August 16, 2017, the final new proposed sentencing guidelines were completed and approved by MSC by a six-to-two board vote, with one member abstaining. The guidelines were published and made available by MSC on November 9, 2017.
| Date published: | November 7, 2019 |
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