Supreme Court of Georgia
Nordahl v. the State.
June 3, 2019829 S.E.2d 99
Summary
The Supreme Court of Georgia held that Georgia's general recidivist statute requires an elements-only analysis of prior federal or out-of-state convictions, rather than an inquiry into the underlying conduct. That approach is required by the statute's text and by the Sixth Amendment, which limits sentencing courts to facts necessarily established by the prior conviction. Applying the modified categorical approach, the court concluded that Nordahl's federal conspiracy conviction qualified as a Georgia felony predicate and affirmed his recidivist sentence.