COLUMBUS, Ohio-- The Ohio Supreme Court has upheld the constitutionality of a criminal sentencing ruling it made in 2006 to comply with U.S. Supreme Court rulings.
The court ruled unanimously Tuesday that the prior ruling did not violate a defendant's constitutional rights to a jury trial or due process.
The 2006 ruling said judges could not consider evidence that wasn't presented at trial when deciding sentences.
Ohio law at the time required judges to consider evidence that was not presented during trial, such as past criminal records, when considering a sentence above the minimum for a particular crime.
The court on Tuesday upheld its earlier ruling that judges have the discretion to impose a sentence above the minimum even without making factual findings.
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