¶ … legislation, lawmakers need to focus on the public good, the possible repercussions of their actions, and most importantly, the "fairness" of their legislation. These three tenets seem to have been disregarded when California passed its 3-strikes law in 1994. The law has not only failed to serve the public good (both financially and in terms of crime), but it has created a dynamic within the criminal justice system that seeks to punish minor offenses, while shifting focus away from violent offenders. Worst of all, the 3-strikes rule has proven to be blatantly unfair. Not only is it exceedingly harsh in its penalization of convicts (particularly those accused of nonviolent crimes), but it is also applied disproportionately to minorities and the poor.
In order to understand the 3-strikes law, it is important to explore its origins and original intents. New approaches to solving crime reached a breaking point in the early nineties in California as crime rates reached continued to escalate. Policymakers were drawn to the fact that the majority of crimes within the state (both petty and serious offenses) were attributable to repeat offenders (NJ website).
In 1992, Polly Class, a 12-year-old girl was kidnapped from her home and murdered by a convicted child molester (NJ website). Richard Allen Davis, the man accused, had been convicted of kidnapping on two previous occasions (NJ website). The specifics of the case (particularly the fact that he been convicted twice before) drew outrage from many within the community and the state (NJ website). Polly's father, Marc, along with many other politicians hoping to reduce crime formed a coalition supporting 3-strikes laws. The new coalition pressured others for their support, branding the opposition as "soft on crime." Through some political manipulation and intimidation, the law was enacted in 1994 (NJ website).
Unlike other 3-strikes laws around the country, California's is unique...
California Three-Strike Law In California, there is a serious attempt of controlling crime. Various laws have been enacted to control the criminals who are repeatedly being caught for serious crimes. Penal Code 1170.12 (Proposition 184) was one such law passed by the citizens in March 1994 to deal with the criminals. The Penal Code is popularly known as "Three Strikes and you are out." It all started when Mike Reynolds drafted
Stratified sampling will allow the research team to take these prejudices into account when examining the data so as to avoid any skewing resulting from prejudices. The potential population in this study is clearly defined. Although the effect of the three strike rule on the general public cannot be completely disregarded, it is more likely that the general public is more greatly affected by generalized criminal statutes to govern their
Three Strikes Law There are numerous problems associated with the prison system in the state of California. More than a few of these problems are directly caused by the state's infamous Three Strikes legislation -- in which individuals who receive three felonies are sentenced to 25 years to a life term in prison. In codifying the problems related to the state's prison system as identified by the essay written by the
Therefore, by increasing the costs of imprisonment by the three strikes law, it is intended that there will be less crime. Marwell and Moody express several difficulties with the laws in the 24 states: Criminals are not always aware of the laws, at least not initially; repeat criminals can be expected to serve substantial prison terms even in the absence of the laws; almost all of the states already
Three Strikes Law on the African-American Community Three Strikes legislation, which imposes sentencing enhancement on repeat offenders, often culminating with mandatory life sentences for third-time offenders, has gained popularity throughout the United States. The legislation began in California, where two highly publicized murders committed by convicted felons prompted an outcry against allowing recidivists to return to the community. California did see a decrease in crime rates following its institution of
Three Strike Law: The Three Strikes Laws are policies in the criminal justice system that target repeat criminals and are enacted by many states. Following three distinct offense convictions or strikes, offenders are locked out of society by being sentenced to life imprisonment. The reason behind the Three Strike Law is that offenders who commit crimes repeatedly are likely to pose a serious threat to the society and should be
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