State v. Anderson
State v. Anderson
Opinion of the Court
This appeal from a stealing conviction is another challenge to the range of punish
The jury had found defendant guilty of stealing and assessed punishment at one year in jail. The trial court sentenced him as an admitted double felon to five years in prison.
Defendant’s contention is refuted by State v. VanHorn, 625 S.W.2d 874[7-9] (Mo. 1981) where the court denied the same challenge, declaring: “(t)he option to impose a sentence of imprisonment in the county jail lies only with the court and not with the jury, notwithstanding the language contained in MAI-CR2d 24.20.4. Therefore, the jury could not have ‘assessed a term in the county jail,’ or if it purported to do so, at most it would have been a nonbinding recommendation.”
VanHorn was followed in State v. Bradford, 627 S.W.2d 281[3] (Mo. 1982), the court declaring: “A jury verdict assessing a fine would have been advisory and not binding on the court.”
Affirmed.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.