The following excerpt is from United States v. Stanfill El, D.C. No. 3:11-cr-00252-PK-1, No. 12-30155 (9th Cir. 2013):
The Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution provides the right to a jury trial "[i]n all criminal prosecutions." But "'there is a category of petty crimes or offenses which is not subject to the Sixth Amendment jury trial provision.'" Lewis v. United States, 518 U.S. 322, 325 (1996) (quoting Duncan v. Louisiana, 391 U.S. 145, 159 (1968)). To determine whether an offense is petty, courts look to the maximum penalty that could result from a conviction. Id. at 326.
Courts presume that an offense is petty when it carries a maximum term of imprisonment of six months or less. Id. The maximum period of incarceration is not the only relevant form of punishment, but it is the most important. Blanton v. City of N. Las Vegas, 489 U.S. 538, 542 (1989); United States v. Ballek, 170 F.3d 871, 876 (9th Cir. 1999). A defendant can
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