Argumentative Essay: The Three Strikes Law

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America has the highest incarceration rate in the world, at 100 prisoners for every 100,000 citizens. Our judicial system is supposed to interpret the laws and constitution, providing fair punishment for criminals, but it often falls short. Judges are forced to uphold unjust policies, and some allow their personal bias to influence sentencing. This results in overcrowded and underfunded prisons with an extreme racial disparity. The three strikes law was created under the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, requiring a life sentence for felons convicted of a serious and violent felony, with at least two prior criminal convictions, whereas at least one of the former felonies must have also been serious or violent. A serious …show more content…

A new amendment would “[R]emove the crimes of burglary and robbery that don’t actually result in significant bodily harm from the list of crimes classified as violent felonies,” (Ellie). It would also, similar to Proposition 36, allow those sentenced under the previous law to petition the court. California Secretary of State Padilla stated backers of the amendment are gathering the signatures necessary to submit a ballot. According to the Legislative Analyst’s Office and the Department of finance, such a measure could save an estimated $100 million annually. (Ellie) The three strikes law has been challenged to be unconstitutional, violating the Eighth Amendment, which prohibits cruel and unusual punishment (Cornell Law). A defendant was found guilty of stealing $150 worth of videotapes from various California department stores, which appears a mild crime. However, he has two prior convictions, and per California’s three strikes law, he was sentenced 50 years in prison (FindLaw). This was eventually taken to the Supreme Court in the case of Lockyer v. Andrade, where the punishment was deemed

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