Strikeout Reform.

• Author: Garza, Mariel
• Position: Efforts to repeal mandatory sentencing laws in California - Brief Article

It was a tragedy--a middle-aged twist on Romeo and Juliet. In November, a 46-year-old Sacramento man and his 45-year-old girlfriend killed themselves rather than be kept apart for the rest of their lives. It wasn't a family feud that drove the couple to lock themselves in a garage with the car running. It was a minor criminal offense: possession of less than an ounce of marijuana and a small amount of methamphetamine, plus a weapons charge.

According to newspaper reports, the man had just found out that the crime, coupled with prior convictions from about 20 years earlier, had triggered California's harsh three-strikes law. In the Golden State, a third felony conviction automatically leads to a prison sentence of 25 years to life, regardless of the severity of the crime. Although judges have some discretion to disregard minor offenses, the law still forces many nonviolent offenders to spend long stretches behind bars.

Now a group called Citizens Against Violent Crime is circulating an initiative to reform the law...