Three Strikes and You’re Out: Is This Criminal Law Justice?
With an increasingly crowded penitentiary system and many offenders serving life in prison for nonviolent crimes, more and more critics of America’s current legal system – including California criminal defense lawyers– have been questioning the usefulness of the three strikes law in today’s society.
The Law
Though its name is largely self-explanatory in nature, California’s Three Strikes Sentencing Law isn’t quite as straightforward as it sounds. It mandates that anyone convicted of a second felony be sentenced to twice the sentence that a first would incur. For a third, the sentence must be at least 25 years, and possibly as long as life.
In 2012, the passing of Proposition 36 amended the law to state that only a serious or violent prior felony would qualify offenders for the 25-year-to-life sentence, and those currently serving a third-strike sentence for felonies that no longer apply might petition the court for a reduced sentence.
A Poor Rationale?
Despite the recent amendments, some still question the legitimacy of this law. In the case of violent repeat offenders, lawmakers and the public are slightly less divided. But what about cases where no violence is involved, or worse, sting operations? A story about a Louisiana man illustrates this case well.
Fate Winslow sold an undercover officer a dime bag of marijuana, at the officer’s request, and is now serving life in prison because he had two previous convictions. Though illegal, the crime was far from a violent offense. As reported by KTBS, “Critics have long argued Louisiana’s habitual offender law, coupled with mandatory minimums, have disproportionately affected black males and lead to jail overcrowding.”
Not Just a Problem for the Convicted
While many citizens and lawmakers may not be concerned about the fates of the convicted, everyone should be concerned about overcrowding. As of 2010 it cost more than $31,000 to keep someone in prison for a year.
More importantly, though, some question the right of society to lock people up indefinitely for nonviolent crimes. Moreover, as stated above, profiling ensures that the three strikes law is often unfairly used against certain subsets of the population.
If you are a victim of the three strikes law and wondering how a California criminal defense lawyer can help your case, call now at (310) 277-1707, or go to our website: www.youareinnocent.com to learn more about your options.
