State v. Bischoff

Citations

• 337 Conn. 739

Syllabus

Pursuant to statute (§ 54-194), ''[t]he repeal of any statute defining or pre- scribing the punishment for any crime shall not affect any pending prosecutions or any existing liability to prosecution and punishment therefor, unless expressly provided in the repealing statute that such repeal shall have that effect.'' Pursuant further to statute (§ 1-1 (t)), ''[t]he repeal of an act shall not affect the punishment, penalty or forfeiture incurred before the repeal takes effect . . . .'' The defendant was convicted of and sentenced to an effective term of incarceration of five years for possession of narcotics, among other crimes, in connection with events that occurred in 2014. After the defen- dant's arrest but prior to his conviction in 2016, the legislature amended the statute (§ 21a-279) under which the defendant was convicted, effec- tive October 1, 2015, by changing possession of narcotics from a class D felony with a maximum sentence of seven years of imprisonment to a class A misdemeanor with a maximum sentence of one year of imprisonment. After the defendant unsuccessfully appealed from the judgment of conviction, he filed a motion to correct an illegal sentence, arguing, inter alia, that the legislature had intended its 2015 amendment to § 21a-279 to apply retroactively. The trial court dismissed the motion to correct, and the defendant appealed to the Appellate Court, which directed the trial court to deny rather than to dismiss the defendant's motion, concluding, inter alia, that the 2015 amendment did not apply retroactively. On the granting of certification, the defendant appealed to this court. Held: 1. The Appellate Court correctly determined that the defendant was properly sentenced in accordance with the version of § 21a-279 that was in effect when he committed the crimes of which he was convicted: this court has interpreted §§ 54-194 and 1-1 (t) to embody a presumption that changes to criminal statutes prescribing or defining punishment apply prospe