The California three strikes law has put many people in prison since the early 1990s when it was enacted. It's meant to remove those career offenders who continue to get convicted and commit crimes year after year.

When you have a third strike case, you face a minimum of 25 to life if convicted.  These cases are severe, and I've handled many of them since I've been practicing since the California three strikes law existed. One way to deal with these cases is to break them down piece by piece. First, we have to look at your prior strikes. How old are they?

If they are remote and they were a long time ago, that's a good reason to be able to get them struck so they can't be used against you. If you're a third striker, they will look at both strikes.  Sometimes, people have more than two strikes. 

Then, to get a resolution, we've got to get all of the strikes stricken to keep you out of a lengthy prison sentence, or we can get one stricken, depending on the facts and circumstances we're discussing.

Different Defense Strategies

Other ways to be successful in a three strikes case include the following:

• Win the underlying offense;
• Get the case reduced to a misdemeanor
• Attack or negotiate a violent felony;
• Try to get the prosecutors to strike those priors.

Even when faced with a case where strike priors are alleged against you, over a million-dollar bail, and the possibility of 25 to life, it's important to remember that winning the open case successfully can render the strikes irrelevant. This is a viable path to victory in a third-strike case.

Another promising avenue for success is to have the case reduced to a misdemeanor.  The California three-strikes law does not apply to misdemeanors, offering a potential way out of the severe consequences of a third-strike case. 

It's important to note that the legislature, lawmakers, and even the voters have shown a willingness to address some areas of the three strikes law. This potential for change is something we must evaluate to see if it can help your case. 

One area that is undoubtedly helpful is that the third strike must be a serious or violent felony for the 25-to-life sentence to be triggered. So, it can't just be a felony like it used to be.

What's Happening with the Three-Strikes Law in Los Angeles?

This is a good question because, as most people know, the current district attorney for Los Angeles County has argued that the California three strikes law is unconstitutional and should not be used against criminal defendants. 

So, we see that many courthouses are not using people's prior strikes against them.  In other words, they're not alleging them in the criminal complaints.  But some rogue prosecutors are filing those strikes against people. It is a violent equal protection law where some courts file the charges prior to strikes while others do not.

You want to get an attorney with much experience dealing with the three strikes law and, specifically, many experiences dealing with the politics behind Los Angeles criminal courts.  Determining how to avoid those prior strikes is crucial because they can double or triple a person's sentence.

Many people don't understand that LA's district attorney's office is still filing charges that are strikes against people.  It's two separate things.  One is the actual prior convictions that are mainly not being used against people, but another is that if you commit a robbery, they will still charge you. The district attorney's office, as the prosecuting authority, has the power to decide which charges to file against a defendant, including whether to file charges that could result in a 'strike' under the three-strikes law. 

They will not charge crimes that are strikes.  So, if you plead guilty to Penal Code 211 PC robbery, which is a specific legal code for robbery in California, you have a strike on your record.  Where the rub is is when somebody commits a new offense.  For example, let's say it's a robbery, and they have a prior robbery conviction.  That's going to be a second-strike case.

What's happening, for the most part, is they're not using that prior robbery against you.  You still have it.  It's still there, but the prosecutors are not using that to double up your sentence.  They can certainly still make it difficult for you.  

Negotiation with the Prosecutor

So, in addition to looking at the open case and seeing if we can attack or negotiate it, we'll also look at the strike priors and try to get the prosecutors to strike one or more of them. 

We can also file a Romero motion with the judge in charge of the case to get the judge to strike one or more priors. A Romero motion is a legal procedure that allows the judge to dismiss or 'strike' a prior conviction, thereby reducing the potential sentence. So, defending a third-strike case is a multi-prong attack, and you need an attorney with extensive experience in dealing with these cases.

I've been doing this long and practicing since the three-strikes law existed. So, if you or a loved one is charged with a third strike case, you need a great attorney.  You need someone who has a lot of experience. So, pick up the phone now.  Ask for a meeting with Ron Hedding.