Criminal sentencing in cases involving age deception modified.

A bill for an act

relating to public safety; modifying criminal sentencing in cases involving age

deception; amending Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 244.10, subdivision 5a;

proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 609.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 244.10, subdivision 5a, is amended to read:

Subd. 5a.

Aggravating factors.

(a) As used in this section, "aggravating factors" include,

but are not limited to, situations where:

(1) the victim was particularly vulnerable due to age, infirmity, or reduced physical or

mental capacity, which was known or should have been known to the offender;

(2) the victim was treated with particular cruelty for which the offender should be held

responsible;

(3) the current conviction is for a criminal sexual conduct offense or an offense in which

the victim was otherwise injured and there is a prior felony conviction for a criminal sexual

conduct offense or an offense in which the victim was otherwise injured;

(4) the offense was a major economic offense, identified as an illegal act or series of

illegal acts committed by other than physical means and by concealment or guile to obtain

money or property, to avoid payment or loss of money or property, or to obtain business or

professional advantage. The presence of two or more of the circumstances listed below are

aggravating factors with respect to the offense:

(i) the offense involved multiple victims or multiple incidents per victim;

(ii) the offense involved an attempted or actual monetary loss substantially greater than

the usual offense or substantially greater than the minimum loss specified in the statutes;

(iii) the offense involved a high degree of sophistication or planning or occurred over a

lengthy period of time;

(iv) the offender used the offender's position or status to facilitate the commission of

the offense, including positions of trust, confidence, or fiduciary relationships; or

(v) the offender had been involved in other conduct similar to the current offense as

evidenced by the findings of civil or administrative law proceedings or the imposition of

professional sanctions;

(5) the offense was a major controlled substance offense, identified as an offense or

series of offenses related to trafficking in controlled substances under circumstances more

onerous than the usual offense. The presence of two or more of the circumstances listed

below are aggravating factors with respect to the offense:

(i) the offense involved at least three separate transactions in which controlled substances

were sold, transferred, or possessed with intent to do so;

(ii) the offense involved an attempted or actual sale or transfer of controlled substances

in quantities substantially larger than for personal use;

(iii) the offense involved the manufacture of controlled substances for use by other

parties;

(iv) the offender knowingly possessed a firearm during the commission of the offense;

(v) the circumstances of the offense reveal the offender to have occupied a high position

in the drug distribution hierarchy;

(vi) the offense involved a high degree of sophistication or planning or occurred over a

lengthy period of time or involved a broad geographic area of disbursement; or

(vii) the offender used the offender's position or status to facilitate the commission of

the offense, including positions of trust, confidence, or fiduciary relationships;

(6) the offender committed, for hire, a crime against the person;

(7) the offender is sentenced according to section
609.3455, subdivision 3a
;

(8) the offender is a dangerous offender who committed a third violent crime, as described

in section
609.1095, subdivision 2
;

(9) the offender is a career offender as described in section
609.1095, subdivision 4
;

(10) the offender committed the crime as part of a group of three or more persons who

all actively participated in the crime;

(11) the offender intentionally selected the victim or the property against which the

offense was committed, in whole or in part, because of the victim's, the property owner's,

or another's actual or perceived race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, disability, age,

or national origin;

(12) the offender used another's identity without authorization to commit a crime. This

aggravating factor may not be used when the use of another's identity is an element of the

offense;

(13) the offense was committed in the presence of a child;
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and
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(14) an adult offender intentionally deceived a minor victim into believing the offender

was also a minor in order to facilitate the commission of the offense; and

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(14)
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(15)
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the offense was committed in a location in which the victim had an expectation

of privacy.

(b) Notwithstanding section
609.04
or
609.035
, or other law to the contrary, when a

court sentences an offender for a felony conviction, the court may order an aggravated

sentence beyond the range specified in the sentencing guidelines grid based on any

aggravating factor arising from the same course of conduct.

(c) Nothing in this section limits a court from ordering an aggravated sentence based on

an aggravating factor not described in paragraph (a).

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EFFECTIVE DATE.

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This section is effective August 1, 2026, and applies to crimes

committed on or after that date.

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Sec. 2.

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[609.099] DECEPTION REGARDING AGE AS SENTENCING FACTOR.

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When determining an appropriate sentence for a crime, a judge may consider as a relevant

factor whether an adult offender intentionally deceived a minor victim into believing the

offender was also a minor in order to facilitate the commission of the crime.

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EFFECTIVE DATE.

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This section is effective August 1, 2026, and applies to crimes

committed on or after that date.

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