People of Michigan v. Jermaine Terrell Jackson ( 2019 )

Order Michigan Supreme Court
Lansing, Michigan
November 27, 2019 Bridget M. McCormack,
Chief Justice
157164 David F. Viviano,
Chief Justice Pro Tem
Stephen J. Markman
Brian K. Zahra
PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN, Richard H. Bernstein
Plaintiff-Appellant, Elizabeth T. Clement
Megan K. Cavanagh,
Justices
v SC: 157164
COA: 333722
Monroe CC: 15-242179-FC
JERMAINE TERRELL JACKSON,
Defendant-Appellee.
_____________________________________/
By order of June 20, 2018, the application for leave to appeal the December 12,
2017 judgment of the Court of Appeals was held in abeyance pending the decision in
People v Dixon-Bey (Docket No. 156746). On order of the Court, leave to appeal having
been denied in Dixon-Bey on July 29, 2019, 504 Mich ___ (2019), the application is again
considered and, pursuant to MCR 7.305(H)(1), in lieu of granting leave to appeal, we
REVERSE the Court of Appeals judgment holding that the trial court failed to adequately
support its departure sentence, and remanding this case to the trial court for resentencing.
The Court of Appeals clearly erred in concluding that the trial court’s justifications for the
departure were entirely encapsulated by the offense variables. Taken as a whole, the trial
court’s justifications were addressed not only to the seriousness of the offense, but also to
the danger posed by this particular offender, who intentionally and needlessly created an
exceptionally dangerous situation and whose criminal behavior was escalating. The Court
of Appeals failed to note and account for the trial court’s express statement that the
departure was a fair and proportionate sentence for the protection of society in these
circumstances. The trial court did not abuse its discretion by violating the principle of
proportionality when it imposed a modest departure for the reasons provided.
I, Larry S. Royster, Clerk of the Michigan Supreme Court, certify that the
foregoing is a true and complete copy of the order entered at the direction of the Court.
November 27, 2019
b1120
Clerk