Misdemeanors And Three Strikes: Understanding The Law's Application

does the three strike law apply to misdemeanors

The three strikes and you're out law, a habitual offender law, has been implemented in the United States since 1952. The law, which is part of the Anti-Violence Strategy of the United States Justice Department, imposes longer sentences on repeat offenders convicted of multiple serious felonies. While the law is designed to deter violent crime, critics argue that it has led to mass incarceration, high trial costs, and overburdened courts. As of 2024, 28 states have some form of a three-strikes law, with variations in how they work and who they punish. While some states include misdemeanors as qualifying strikes, others require at least one violent crime to be considered a strike.

Characteristics Values
Type of law Three-strikes law
Type of crime Misdemeanor
Location Hawai'i
Date April 2024
Status Advanced by the House
Offences Assault against a law enforcement officer in the second degree, sexual assault in the fourth degree and assault in the third degree
Penalty Class C felony
Number of offences Three offences within five years
Supporters Rep. Gene Ward
Opponents Rep. Sonny Ganaden

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What is the three-strikes law?

The three-strikes law, or habitual offender law, is a criminal sentencing structure that imposes significantly harsher punishments on repeat offenders. The law was first implemented in the United States in 1952 as part of the Justice Department's Anti-Violence Strategy. Twenty-eight states have some form of a three-strikes law, with the first true three-strikes laws passed in Washington and California in 1993 and 1994, respectively.

The three-strikes law requires a person convicted of an offence, who has one or two other previous serious convictions, to serve a mandatory life sentence in prison, with or without parole depending on the jurisdiction. The law is designed to drastically increase the punishment of those who continue to commit offences after being convicted of one or two serious crimes.

The expression "Three strikes and you are out" is derived from baseball, where a batter has three chances to either hit a pitched ball or earn an error called a "strike." After three strikes, the batter strikes out and their chance to score is over.

The three-strikes law is similar to repeat offender laws, which enhance penalties for offenders with a criminal history. However, three-strikes laws are designed to ensure that certain kinds of offenders, often referred to as "career criminals" or "habitual offenders," receive substantially more severe penalties for reoffending, sometimes up to life imprisonment. These laws may mandate judges to impose the sentence, rather than giving judges discretion in sentencing.

Three-strikes laws generally deal with serious and violent felony offences, such as rape, murder, arson, and robbery. However, the list of crimes that count as strikes varies by state, with some including nonviolent offences like treason, drug trafficking, felony theft, and bribery.

While three-strikes laws aim to reduce violent crime and address individuals whose behaviour has not been deterred by more conventional approaches to punishment, they have been subject to criticism and constitutional challenges. Some critics argue that the laws impose unfairly harsh penalties and focus too much on street crime rather than white-collar crime. Additionally, there have been concerns about the disproportionate impact of three-strikes laws on minority and mentally ill populations.

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Does the three-strikes law apply to misdemeanors in Hawaii?

In the United States, habitual offender laws, commonly referred to as three-strikes laws, have been implemented since at least 1952. Twenty-eight states have some form of a three-strikes law, but Hawaii is not one of them.

Hawaii's criminal justice system classifies offenses into three grades: felonies, misdemeanors, and violations. Felonies and misdemeanors are considered crimes and are punishable by imprisonment and fines. Misdemeanors are criminal offenses less serious than felonies and are punishable by prison terms of no more than one year in county jail and fines of up to $2,000.

Three-strikes laws are designed to impose significantly longer sentences on offenders convicted of multiple serious felonies, typically violent crimes such as rape, murder, arson, and robbery. While the specific crimes that qualify as strikes vary by state, they generally deal with serious and violent felony offenses.

Therefore, while misdemeanors may be considered in sentencing, they do not qualify as strikes under three-strikes laws. However, it is important to note that the application of these laws can depend on various factors, including the length of time between crimes, the seriousness of the crimes, the order in which they were committed, and the discretion of the judge in sentencing under local laws.

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Which misdemeanors count towards the three-strikes rule?

The applicability of misdemeanours towards the three-strikes rule varies across different states in the US. In most jurisdictions, only felony-level crimes qualify as serious offences, and some states require one or more of the three convictions to be for violent crimes to impose a mandatory life sentence.

However, some states include additional, lesser offences that one would not normally see as violent. For example, California's three-strikes law includes many lesser offences, such as firearm violations, burglary, simple robbery, arson, and providing hard drugs to a minor, and drug possession.

In California, if the third strike is not a serious or violent offence, the sentencing is doubled compared to what it would usually be for that felony. In some cases, receiving a third strike for a felony that is neither serious nor violent can still result in a sentence of 25 years to life.

In summary, while most states require violent or serious felonies for the three-strikes rule, some states, like California, include certain misdemeanours as qualifying offences. The specific crimes that count as strikes vary by state, so it is important to refer to the laws of a particular state to understand which misdemeanours, if any, count towards the three-strikes rule.

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What are the criticisms of the three-strikes law?

The three-strikes law has been criticised on several grounds, including:

  • It is not a new law, just a variation on an old theme: States have had habitual offender laws and recidivist statutes for years, which impose stiff penalties, including life sentences, on repeat offenders. Therefore, the three-strikes law is an "old law dressed up in new clothes".
  • It will not deter most violent crimes: Most violent crimes are not premeditated, but are committed in anger, in the heat of passion, or under the influence of alcohol. The prospect of a life sentence is unlikely to stop people who are acting impulsively.
  • It could lead to an increase in violence: Many law enforcement professionals oppose the three-strikes law as they fear it will spur a dramatic increase in violence against police, corrections officers, and the public. A criminal facing a mandatory life sentence will be more likely to resist arrest, kill witnesses, or attempt a prison escape.
  • It will clog the courts: The criminal courts already suffer from serious backlogs, and the three-strikes law will make the situation worse. Faced with a mandatory life sentence, repeat offenders will demand costly and time-consuming trials rather than submit to plea bargaining.
  • It takes away sentencing discretion from judges: The three-strikes law makes life sentences without parole mandatory, thus tying the hands of judges who have traditionally been responsible for weighing both mitigating and aggravating circumstances before imposing a sentence.
  • The cost of imprisoning three-time offenders for life will be prohibitively high: The three-strikes law will lead to a significant increase in the nation's already swollen prison population, at enormous cost to taxpayers. The cost of maintaining an older prisoner is about three times that of a younger prisoner.
  • It will have a disproportionate impact on minority offenders: There is racial bias in the criminal justice system, with African American men being overrepresented in all criminal justice statistics, including arrests, victimisations, incarceration, and executions. As many of the three-strikes laws include drug offenses as prior "strikes", more black offenders will be subject to life sentences.
  • It will impose life sentences on offenders whose crimes do not warrant such harsh punishment: Many of the three-strikes proposals encompass a broad range of criminal conduct, from rape to minor assaults. This departs sharply from the proportionality rule, which states that the punishment must fit the crime.
  • It is not a serious response to crime: The three-strikes law is based on the mistaken belief that focusing on harsh sentencing schemes for offenders will lead to a reduction in the crime rate. However, this approach does not address the conditions that cause people to turn to crime and violence, and it fails to prevent crimes from happening in the first place.
  • It clogs the court system: Defendants take cases to trial in an attempt to avoid life sentences, clogging the court system.
  • It clogs jails: Defendants must be detained while waiting for these trials because the likelihood of a life sentence makes them a flight risk.
  • It imposes disproportionate penalties: Non-violent felonies, such as drug possession, can count as a third strike, resulting in a disproportionate penalty.
  • It focuses too much on street crime rather than white-collar crime: Three-strikes laws have been criticised for focusing too much on street crime and not enough on white-collar crime.
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How does the three-strikes law vary between states?

The three-strikes law varies significantly between states in the US. While some states require three strikes for a life sentence, others require only two. The crimes that qualify as strikes also vary between states, with some including nonviolent offenses like treason, drug trafficking, felony theft, and bribery.

In California, the three-strikes law was enacted in 1994 and imposed a life sentence for almost any crime, regardless of how minor, if the defendant had two prior convictions for crimes defined as serious or violent by the California Penal Code. This law was amended in 2012 to eliminate life sentences for non-serious, non-violent crimes and allowed inmates to petition for a reduced sentence. Despite these changes, California still has one of the harshest three-strikes laws in the country, with a third strike resulting in 25 years to life imprisonment.

Other states with particularly harsh three-strikes laws include Georgia, Montana, Tennessee, Louisiana, South Carolina, Indiana, New Jersey, North Carolina, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin, where a third strike results in life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. In contrast, some states like New Mexico and Colorado have parole options after serving a certain number of years.

The effectiveness of three-strikes laws in reducing crime rates is debated, with critics arguing that they impose unfairly harsh penalties, increase incarceration rates, and negatively impact the criminal justice system by overburdening courts and increasing trial costs.

Frequently asked questions

The three-strikes law is a habitual offender law that imposes longer sentences on repeat offenders. The law requires a person who is convicted of an offense and has one or two other previous serious convictions to serve a mandatory life sentence in prison, with or without parole depending on the jurisdiction.

The three-strikes law generally deals with serious and violent felony offenses. Common crimes considered "strikes" include rape, murder, arson, and robbery. However, the list of "strikes" varies by state, and some include nonviolent offenses like treason, drug trafficking, felony theft, and bribery.

While the three-strikes law typically applies to felony offenses, there have been recent developments in some states to include certain misdemeanors. For example, in Hawaii, lawmakers have advanced a three-strikes measure that would elevate the penalty to a Class C felony for people convicted of three specific misdemeanors within five years. These misdemeanors include assault against a law enforcement officer in the second degree, sexual assault in the fourth degree, and assault in the third degree.

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