Second or Subsequent CSC Offenses in Michigan (MCL 750.520f)

Under MCL 750.520f, a person convicted of a second or subsequent offense of first-, second- or third-degree criminal sexual conduct (CSC) must receive a sentence with a mandatory minimum of at least 5 years.^[1] A prior conviction counts whenever it happened, and it may come from Michigan, another state or the federal system.^[2]

This page explains which convictions trigger the rule, what counts as a prior, how the mandatory minimum works with the sentencing guidelines and the habitual offender statutes, and how it differs from the life-without-parole provision.

What does MCL 750.520f say?

The section has two subsections. The first states the rule: "If a person is convicted of a second or subsequent offense under section 520b, 520c, or 520d, the sentence imposed under those sections for the second or subsequent offense shall provide for a mandatory minimum sentence of at least 5 years."^[1]

The second defines a second or subsequent offense: one where, "prior to conviction of the second or subsequent offense, the actor has at any time been convicted under section 520b, 520c, or 520d or under any similar statute of the United States or any state for a criminal sexual offense including rape, carnal knowledge, indecent liberties, gross indecency, or an attempt to commit such an offense."^[2]

Which current convictions trigger the 5-year minimum?

Only three. The rule applies to "a second or subsequent offense under section 520b, 520c, or 520d".^[1]

Offense now being sentenced	Statutory maximum	Named in MCL 750.520f(1)?
CSC first degree, MCL 750.520b	Life or any term of years[6]	Yes: minimum of at least 5 years[1]
CSC second degree, MCL 750.520c	15 years[7]	Yes: minimum of at least 5 years[1]
CSC third degree, MCL 750.520d	15 years[8]	Yes: minimum of at least 5 years[1]
CSC fourth degree, MCL 750.520e	2 years or a fine of up to $500, or both[9]	No; subsection (1) names sections 520b, 520c and 520d[1]
Assault with intent to commit CSC, MCL 750.520g	10 years (penetration) or 5 years (second degree)[10][11]	No; subsection (1) names sections 520b, 520c and 520d[1]

For a first-degree conviction, other mandatory provisions may apply instead of or in addition to this one: the 25-year minimum where the actor is 17 or older and the victim is under 13, and life without parole in the situation described below.^[12][5] All three are compared in mandatory minimum sentences in CSC cases.

What counts as a prior conviction?

The statute describes two groups of priors.^[2]

• Michigan CSC convictions. A conviction "under section 520b, 520c, or 520d", meaning first-, second- or third-degree CSC.^[2]
• Convictions under similar laws elsewhere. A conviction "under any similar statute of the United States or any state for a criminal sexual offense including rape, carnal knowledge, indecent liberties, gross indecency, or an attempt to commit such an offense."^[2]

Three details in the wording matter.

"At any time." The prior may be of any age; the statute sets no look-back period.^[2]

"Prior to conviction." The statute measures from the conviction for the second or subsequent offense: the actor must have been convicted of the earlier offense "prior to conviction of the second or subsequent offense".^[2] How that wording applies when several charges are resolved close together is not addressed in the sources this library relies on.

Offense names. The list includes "rape", a word Michigan's own statutes stopped using as the name of the crime when 1974 PA 266 repealed the earlier rape statute and enacted the degree-based CSC statutes.^[13][14] See Is "rape" a legal term in Michigan?

How does the 5-year minimum work at sentencing?

Where a statute mandates a minimum sentence, the court must impose a sentence in accordance with it, and imposing a mandatory minimum is not a departure from the sentencing guidelines.^[15]

The statute says "at least 5 years", which raises the question of what happens above 5. The benchbook quotes the Michigan Supreme Court in People v Wilcox: "Although MCL 750.520f(1) authorizes a minimum sentence in excess of 5 years, it does not mandate it"; the mandatory minimum is therefore "a flat 5-year term", and the legislative sentencing guidelines apply to minimum sentences in excess of 5 years that are imposed under the section.^[3]

The general ceiling on minimum sentences still applies: a court may not impose a minimum that exceeds two-thirds of the statutory maximum.^[16] See sentencing guidelines for CSC.

Parole follows the same rule as for other CSC prison sentences. For a crime committed on or after December 15, 1998, a person imprisoned for first-, second- or third-degree CSC comes under the parole board's jurisdiction only after serving a period equal to the minimum sentence the court imposed.^[17]

Notice, and the habitual offender statutes

Michigan's general habitual offender statutes, MCL 769.10 to 769.12, are a separate set of rules for people with prior felony convictions. The benchbook draws two contrasts between them and MCL 750.520f.^[4]

• No separate notice. "Unlike the general habitual offender statutes, MCL 750.520f does not require the prosecution to file notice of its intent to proceed under MCL 750.520f(1)."^[4]
• Both can apply. According to the benchbook, the habitual offender statutes address a defendant's maximum possible sentence and MCL 750.520f addresses the minimum, so "concurrent application of the statutes is permitted", and both may rest on the same previous conviction.^[4]

Before accepting a plea, the court must advise the defendant of any mandatory minimum sentence required by law.^[18] See plea bargains in CSC cases.

How is this different from the life-without-parole provision?

The first-degree statute has its own repeat-offense clause, and it is far narrower and far heavier.^[5]

	MCL 750.520f	MCL 750.520b(2)(c)
Current conviction	First-, second- or third-degree CSC[1]	First-degree CSC by an individual 18 or older against an individual less than 13[5]
Michigan priors that count	Convictions under sections 520b, 520c or 520d[2]	Convictions under sections 520b, 520c, 520d, 520e or 520g committed against an individual less than 13[5]
Priors from elsewhere	Any similar statute of the United States or any state for a criminal sexual offense[2]	A substantially corresponding law of the United States, another state or a political subdivision, committed against an individual less than 13[5]
Result	Mandatory minimum of at least 5 years[1]	Life without the possibility of parole[5]

Other ways a prior sex-offense conviction matters

MCL 750.520f is about the minimum prison sentence.^[1] A prior conviction can also change other things, each covered elsewhere in this library:

• Registry tier. A Tier I offender who is later convicted of another Tier I offense becomes a Tier II offender, and a Tier II offender later convicted of a Tier I or II offense becomes a Tier III offender.^[19] See registry tiers.
• Evidence at trial. Separate statutes govern when earlier acts can be put before a jury; see other-acts evidence under MCL 768.27a and prior sexual assault evidence under MCL 768.27b.
• Bond. See bond in CSC cases.

What people get wrong

"Any second sex offense means 5 years." The offense being sentenced must be under the first-, second- or third-degree CSC statutes.^[1]

"Old convictions drop off." The statute counts a conviction "at any time".^[2]

"Only Michigan convictions count." Convictions under similar statutes of the United States or any state count.^[2]

"The prosecutor has to file a habitual notice for this." The benchbook states that MCL 750.520f does not require the prosecution to file notice of its intent to proceed under it.^[4]

"The 5-year minimum replaces the habitual offender enhancement." The benchbook describes concurrent application of the statutes as permitted.^[4]