Opinion
SC: 158902 COA: 338985
12-29-2022
PEOPLE of the State of Michigan, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Rodney Damon BLACK, Defendant-Appellant.
Order
By order of June 4, 2021, the application for leave to appeal the November 27, 2018 judgment of the Court of Appeals was held in abeyance pending the decisions in People v Boykin (Docket No. 157738 ) and People v Tate (Docket No. 158695). On order of the Court, the cases having been decided on July 28, 2022, 510 Mich ––––, ––– N.W.2d ––––, 2022 WL 3007485 (2022), the application is again considered. Pursuant to MCR 7.305(H)(1), in lieu of granting leave to appeal, we VACATE Part I of the Court of Appeals judgment and we REMAND this case to that court for reconsideration of that issue in light of People v Boykin (Docket No. 157738 ) and People v Tate (Docket No. 158695). In all other respects, leave to appeal is DENIED, because we are not persuaded that the remaining question presented regarding the proportionality of the sentence should be reviewed by this Court.
We do not retain jurisdiction.
Zahra, J. (concurring in part and dissenting in part).
I would deny leave to appeal consistent with my dissent in People v Boykin , 510 Mich ––––, ––– N.W.2d ––––, 2022 WL 3007485 (2022) (Docket No. 157738).
Viviano, J. (concurring in part and dissenting in part).
For the reasons stated in Justice ZAHRA ’s dissent in People v Boykin , 510 Mich ––––, ––– N.W.3d ––––, 2022 WL 3007485 (2022) (Docket No. 157738), I do not believe that the reasoning of Miller v Alabama , 567 U.S. 460, 132 S.Ct. 2455, 183 L.Ed.2d 407 (2012), should have been extended to term-of-years sentences under MCL 769.25 and MCL 769.25a. Instead, I would apply traditional sentencing considerations when a juvenile is sentenced to less than life without parole. See Boykin , 510 Mich at ––––, ––– N.W.2d ––––; slip op. at 23-24 ( ZAHRA , J., dissenting). Therefore, I would deny leave to appeal on all of the issues raised by defendant.