delivered the opinion of the Court.
In this appeal we consider extended term sentencing in a context not previously considered by the Court. In earlier opinions, the Court addressed the distinction between a discretionary or persistent offender extended term and a mandatory extended term,
State v. Martin,
110
N.J.
10, 16,
This appeal requires the Court to address
N.J.S.A.
2C:44-5(a)(2), which limits the number of extended terms that may be imposed in a single sentence. A defendant may be sentenced to multiple mandatory extended terms in the same proceeding.
State v. Connell,
208
N.J.Super.
688, 697,
This is the second time defendant has appeared before this Court concerning his conviction for two drug transactions in December 2003 and January 2004. In
State v. Robinson,
200
N.J.
1,18,
Defendant then filed a motion to reduce his fifteen-year term of imprisonment subject to a five-year period of parole ineligibility. The trial court had imposed two mandatory extended terms on one count of second-degree distribution of a controlled dangerous substance (CDS) within 500 feet of public property and one count of third-degree possession of CDS with intent to distribute. Treating the motion as an application to correct an illegal sentence, the trial court held that the mandatory repeat drug offender extended term should not have been imposed on the second-degree offense. The trial court then imposed a discretionary persistent offender extended term sentence of fifteen years’ imprisonment subject to a five-year period of parole ineligibility on the second-degree offense and a mandatory repeat drug offender extended term of seven years’ imprisonment subject to a three-year period of parole ineligibility on the third-degree offense. Defendant maintains that this sentence also is illegal.
We hold that the plain language of N.J.S.A. 2C:44-5(a)(2) bars the imposition of a discretionary extended term when the prosecutor has requested one and the trial court is obliged to impose a mandatory extended term on another offense in the same proceeding. The statutes governing sentencing provide sufficient flexibility to fashion an appropriate sentence to address the repeat offender without resorting to multiple extended terms. To that end, when a defendant is eligible for imposition of both a discre *599 tionary extended term and a mandatory extended term, the State may elect which extended term it wishes to pursue. We, therefore, reverse the judgment of the Appellate Division and remand the matter for resentencing.
I.
A.
On December 10, 2003, defendant sold three bags of crack cocaine to a Pine Hill undercover officer. A subsequent investigation revealed defendant was selling drugs from his apartment. On January 16, 2004, a search warrant was executed on defendant’s apartment. 1 Police found $4,124 in United States currency, a paper ledger, a scale, and clear plastic bags containing a rock-like substance.
Defendant was indicted for third-degree possession of CDS with intent to distribute, N.J.S.A. 2C:35-5(b)(3) (count one); second-degree possession of CDS with intent to distribute within 500 feet of public property, N.J.S.A. 2C:35-7.1 (count two); third-degree possession of CDS, N.J.S.A 2C:35-10(a)(1) (count three); and third-degree possession of CDS with intent to distribute, N.J.S.A. 2C:35-5(b)(3) (count four). Counts one and two of the indictment arose from the December 10 transaction and counts three and four stemmed from the January 16 search of defendant’s apartment. A jury convicted defendant on all counts.
Defendant had a lengthy criminal history. Prior to the current conviction, defendant had a 1994 conviction of distribution of CDS in a school zone; a 2000 conviction for receiving stolen property, *600 eluding a police officer, and burglary; and a 2002 conviction for criminal restraint exposing another to serious bodily injury. 2
At the time of his sentencing hearing, defendant was serving a three-year prison term with eighteen months of parole ineligibility for the 2002 criminal restraint conviction. At the sentencing hearing, the State moved for a mandatory extended term as a result of the 1994 conviction. The trial court determined that the law permitted imposition of two mandatory repeat drug offender extended terms. The trial court also found the following aggravating factors applied: the risk defendant might commit another crime, N.J.S.A 2C:44-1(a)(3); the extent of defendant’s previous criminal record and serious offenses of which he has been convicted, N.J.S.A. 2C:44-1(a)(6); and the need to deter defendant and others from violating the law, N.J.S.A. 2C:44-1(a)(9). The court found no mitigating factors.
The trial court merged count one into count two, and count three into count four. The court sentenced defendant to two mandatory extended terms pursuant to N.J.S.A. 2C:43-6(f), “as a subsequent drug offender.” On count two, possession of CDS with intent to distribute within 500 feet of public property, the court sentenced defendant to a mandatory extended term of fifteen years’ imprisonment subject to a five-year period of parole ineligibility. On count four, possession of CDS with intent to distribute, the trial court sentenced defendant to a concurrent mandatory extended seven-year term of imprisonment subject to a three-year period of parole ineligibility. The trial court directed that these terms were to be served consecutively to the term he was serving on the 2002 conviction.
Defendant appealed, and following reinstatement of defendant’s conviction and sentence by this Court,
Robinson, supra,
200
N.J.
at 22,
B.
Defendant appealed. Defendant argued that the revised sentence was illegal because it violated the statutory bar on imposition of multiple extended terms.
N.J.S.A.
2C:44-5(a)(2). Defendant acknowledged that the mandatory extended term on count four is legal. He argued, however, that the discretionary extended term on count two is illegal pursuant to the plain language of
N.J.S.A.
2C:44-5. Defendant maintained that the maximum sentence that could have been imposed on count two was ten years. He also contended that the trial court failed to make any findings of fact to permit a parole ineligibility term on count two. In an unpublished order, the Appellate Division affirmed defendant’s sentence. The panel concluded that
State v. Singleton,
326
N.J.Super.
351, 355,
This Court granted defendant’s petition for certification. 212
N.J.
455,
II.
A.
Defendant contends that his sentence is illegal because the plain language of N.J.S.A 2C:44-5(a)(2) bars the imposition of a discretionary extended term on count two, because he was subject to a mandatory extended term on count four. He contends that the plain language of the statute precludes imposition of more than one extended term unless a specific statute overrides the general bar.
Defendant relies on
Hudson, swpra,
209
N.J.
513,
Defendant contends the Appellate Division misread Singleton and Connell to allow both a discretionary and mandatory extended term because those cases addressed only the legality of multiple mandatory extended terms. Defendant asserts that neither court contemplated whether the sentencing judge can impose a discretionary and a mandatory extended term in the same sentence.
*603 B.
The State maintains the Appellate Division correctly affirmed defendant’s sentence because N.J.S.A. 2C:44-5(a)(2) prohibits only more than one discretionary extended term, not a mandatory and a discretionary extended term paired together. Therefore, the sentence fashioned by the trial court was not prohibited because only one discretionary term was imposed.
Examining the legislative intent of the statute, the State asserts that the Legislature contemplated only a bar on multiple discretionary extended terms because the Code of Criminal Justice (Code), when enacted in 1978, did not include mandatory extended term sentences. Further, the Model Penal Code (MPC) at the time of enactment did not include any type of mandatory extended term sentences.
The State emphasizes the practical effect of the rule advocated by defendant. It contends that defendant’s position permits a less serious offense subject to a mandatory extended term to control the sentence fashioned by the trial court. The State urges that the Legislature could not have intended this result when it enacted mandatory extended terms. Furthermore, the State, relying on
Thomas, supra,
195
N.J.
at 436,
III.
A.
Appellate review of a sentence is generally guided by the abuse of discretion standard.
State v. Roth,
95
N.J.
334, 364-65,
B.
The objective of statutory interpretation is to effectuate the intent of the Legislature.
State v. Rangel,
213
N.J.
500, 508-09,
[w]ell-known principles of statutory construction guide the analysis of N.J.S.A. 2C:44-5. The overriding goal is to determine as best we can the intent of the Legislature, and to give effect to that intent. See State v. Shelley, 205 N.J. 320, 323 [15 A.3d 818 ] (2011); DiProspero v. Penn, 183 N.J. 477, 492 [874 A.2d 1039 ] (2005). To accomplish that end, we adhere to the belief that “the best indicator of ... [legislative] intent is the plain language chosen by the Legislature.” Gandhi, supra, 201 N.J. at 176 [989 A.2d 256 ] (citing DiProspero, supra, 183 N.J. at 492 [874 A.2d 1039 ]).
[ 209 N.J. at 529,39 A.3d 150 .]
If the plain language chosen by the Legislature “leads to a clearly understood result” that is consistent with the legislative objectives of the statute and its context with related provisions, we apply the law as written.
Ibid.; Rangel, supra,
213
N.J.
at 509,
This appeal requires the Court to consider the application of N.J.S.A. 2C:44-5(a)(2) to a defendant, whose present conviction and criminal history qualify him for imposition of a discretionary extended term as a persistent offender pursuant to N.J.S.A 2C:44-3(a), and a mandatory extended term pursuant to N.J.S.A. 2C:43-6(f). N.J.S.A. 2C:44-5(a)(2) provides:
*605 When multiple sentences of imprisonment are imposed on a defendant for more than one offense ... such multiple sentences shall run concurrently or consecutively as the court determines at the time of sentence, except that:
(2) Not more than one sentence for an extended term shall be imposed.
Section 5(b) addresses sentences of imprisonment imposed at different times.
See Hudson, supra,
209
N.J.
at 531,
Examining the plain language of the statute as we must,
Gandhi, supra,
201
N.J.
at 176,
[N.J.S.A. 2C:44-5(a)(2) ] addresses the sentencing of a defendant on multiple offenses in a single sentencing proceeding, and states, with unmistakable clarity, that there shall be imposed “not more than one sentence for an extended term” when sentencing a defendant for more than one offense.
1209 N.J. at 530,39 A.3d 150 .]
Admittedly, the Court’s discussion of subsection (a) may be considered dicta, as that subsection of the statute was not the focus of the opinion. Nevertheless, there is nothing in the language used by the Legislature that creates any ambiguity. Rather, N.J.S.A 2C:44-5(a)(2) expressly and unequivocally states that no more than one extended term sentence may be imposed in a single sentencing proceeding. Furthermore, we discern no basis to depart from our previously expressed determination in Hudson that the prohibition against the imposition of multiple extended terms in a single sentence has been expressed with “unmistakable clarity.”
Nevertheless, we consider whether this interpretation is consistent with the legislative objectives of the statute and its context with related provisions. We commence this discussion by examining the derivation of the statute.
N.J.S.A.
2C:44-5, entitled “Multiple sentences; concurrent and consecutive terms,” guides trial court judges in multiple-sentence
*606
circumstances.
Hudson, supra,
209
N.J.
at 527,
When a provision of the Code is modeled after the MPC, it is appropriate to consider the MPC and any commentary to interpret the intent of the statutory language.
4
State v. D.A.,
191
N.J.
158, 167,
The MPC Commentaries provide some guidance on the authority to impose multiple extended terms. Generally, the MPC Commentaries observe that ordinary terms and certain enhanced terms should be adequate to address the multiple offender. It states, “limits that are set for a given offense as appropriate for imposition on the persistent offender, the professional criminal, and the dangerous, abnormal offender ... should be more than adequate in severity for the multiple offender.” Model Penal Code and Commentaries, supra, comment 2 on § 7.06. Furthermore, “[t]here is ample flexibility within the extended term maximum to achieve the additional deterrence that may be sought by imposing consecutive sentences for separate offenses, and any proper preventive or incapacitative objective should also be met by the maximum thus set.” Ibid.
New Jersey’s Code “provides for ordinary sentences,
N.J.S.A.
2C:43-6(a), as well as extended-term sentences that carry greater
*607
punishment for the same crime.”
Pierce, supra,
188
N.J.
at 161,
By contrast, some extended prison term sentences “are mandatory, subjecting the defendant to an extended-term sentence when the court finds certain facts, conditions, or circumstances to exist” while “others confer discretion on the sentencing court.”
Pierce, supra,
188
N.J.
at 161,
Barring more than one extended term when a judge is fashioning a sentence for multiple offenses in a single proceeding is also consistent with the general purposes of the Code sentencing scheme. One of the general purposes, if not the overarching purpose, of the Code provisions governing sentencing of offenders is to promote uniformity of sentencing throughout the State.
State v. Brimage,
153
N.J.
1, 20,
[t]o meet those goals, the Code offers specific sentencing instruction to judges, including detailed guidelines and rules. In particular, the Code provides for a range of permissible sentences for each degree of crime, N.J.S.A 2C:43-6(a); certain mandatory minimum punishments, such as under the Graves Act, N.J.S.A. 2C:43-6(c); the imposition of a mandatory extended term of imprisonment for certain crimes within specified permissible ranges, N.J.S.A. 2C:43-7(a); a presumption of imprisonment for all first and second degree offenses, N.J.S.A 2C:44-1(d); a list of specific aggravating and mitigating factors to be considered in sentencing, N.J.SA 2C:44-1(a), (b); a list of authorized sentencing dispositions, N.J.S.A. 2C:43-2; and a list of the grounds upon which a defendant must be sentenced to a mandatory extended term, N.J.S.A 2C:44-3. While the Code still affords discretion to individual judges in deciding among different factors and choosing a sentence within a permissible range, that discretion is guided by specific standards which apply on a uniform, statewide basis.
[Brimage, supra, 153 N.J. at 20-21,706 A.2d 1096 .]
As we observed in Hudson, supra,
[w]ith enactment of N.J.S.A 2C:44-5, the Legislature has woven a piece on how a sentence should be configured for a defendant confronted with the possibility of serving multiple sentences. N.J.SA 2C:44-5(a) instructs courts on how to sentence a defendant with multiple offenses whose sentences can combine and overlap. It addresses the sentencing of a defendant on multiple offenses in a single sentencing proceeding, and states, with unmistakable clarity, that there shall be imposed “not more than one sentence for an extended term” when sentencing a defendant for more than one offense. N.J.SA 2C:44-5(a)(2).
[ 209 N.J. at 530,39 A.3d 150 .]
*609 Thus, we conclude that the prohibition against multiple extended terms directed by the plain language of subsection (a)(2) is consistent not only with the overarching legislative objective of promoting sentencing uniformity and predictability but also consistent within the context of other provisions governing extended term and mandatory minimum sentencing.
Nevertheless, the State contends that neither the language of the statute nor the opinion expressed by this Court in Hudson accounts for the situation in which one of the extended terms is a mandatory extended term. In other words, the State contends that the plain language of the statute permits the imposition of a mandatory extended term and a discretionary persistent offender extended term. We disagree.
We acknowledge that a canon of statutory construction directs that a specific statute generally overrides a general statute.
See Trinity Cemetery Ass’n v. Twp. of Wall,
170
N.J.
39, 46,
Although
N.J.S.A.
2C:43-6(f) prescribes the imposition of an extended term of imprisonment when a defendant has been convicted previously of certain enumerated drug offenses, this provision also permits the prosecutor to waive such enhancement by declining to request imposition of the extended term. As noted, if the prosecutor requests the imposition of an extended term, and the defendant meets the conditions prescribed by the statute, the sentencing court must impose an extended term.
Lagares, supra,
127
N.J.
at 31,
IV.
Simply stated, the sentence imposed on defendant is illegal. N.J.S.A. 2C:44-5(a)(2) bars the imposition of a discretionary extended term and a mandatory extended term in the same sentencing proceeding. We must, therefore, address the remedy to which defendant is entitled. Defendant urges that this Court simply vacate the discretionary extended term and remand for resentencing with instructions to impose an ordinary term of imprisonment on count two and to maintain the mandatory extended term of seven years’ imprisonment subject to a three-year period of parole ineligibility on count four.
The State argues that a new sentencing hearing should be conducted guided by the law outlined in this opinion. It maintains that the sentencing court fashioned an entire sentence based on a misapprehension of the law. Under those circumstances, the State urges that the prosecutor should have the discretion to decide which count should bear the extended term. In other words, the prosecutor should have the opportunity to invoke his discretion to waive the imposition of a mandatory extended term on count four and to elect to request a discretionary extended term on count two based on defendant’s status as a persistent offender. 5
This Court recently observed that remands for resentencing “cover a range of proceedings, from vacated sentences which
*611
require sentencing anew to mere corrections of technical errors.”
State v. Randolph,
210
N.J.
330, 350,
Our disposition requires vacation of defendant’s sentence and that the matter be remanded for imposition of a new sentence. This is not a remand simply to alter the judgment of conviction to reflect merger of certain counts or for a statement of reasons to support a consecutive term.
Id.
at 353,
If the State elects to forego the mandatory extended term on count four and to request a discretionary extended term on count two, defendant may argue against the imposition of such a term. Similarly, both parties may argue for or against the imposition of consecutive terms and the trial court must identify the appropriate aggravating and mitigating factors, explain the reasons for imposi *612 tion of any extended term of imprisonment, and the reasons for imposing consecutive or concurrent terms of imprisonment.
V.
In sum, we hold that N.J.S.A. 2C:44-5(a)(2) bars imposition of a mandatory extended term and a discretionary extended term in the same sentence. When a defendant is eligible for both types of extended terms, the State may elect which type of extended term it wishes to pursue. Finally, in this case, a new sentencing proceeding must be conducted.
VI.
The judgment of the Appellate Division is reversed and the matter is remanded for resentencing consistent with this opinion.
For reversal and remandment—Chief Justice RABNER and Justices LaVECCHIA, ALBIN, PATTERSON and Judge CUFF (temporarily assigned)—5.
Not Participating—Judge RODRÍGUEZ (temporarily assigned).
Opposed—None.
Notes
Defendant moved to suppress the fruits of this search, arguing there was insufficient probable cause to support the issuance of the search warrant and the police had failed to knock and announce their presence. This Court held that the twenty- to thirty-second delay between a detective knocking and announcing the presence of the police to execute a search warrant and conducting a forcible entry was reasonable and reinstated defendant’s conviction.
Robinson, supra,
200
N.J.
at 18,
Defendant’s pre-sentencing report listed eight municipal court convictions, one of which was for possession of CDS.
State v. Kashif Patterson,
435
NJ.Super.
498, 516,
The New Jersey Criminal Law Revision Commission’s commentary on this section provides little guidance. See II Final Report of the New Jersey Criminal Law Revision Commission, commentary to § 2C:44-5, at 335 (1971).
If the State elects to pursue a discretionary extended term sentence, it may reserve the right to request a mandatory extended term in the event that the trial court denies the State's application for imposition of the discretionary extended term.