Golden Gate University School of Law GGU Law Digital Commons California Agencies California Documents 4-19-1994 A Town Hall Meeting on Three Strikes and You're Out The on.H William J. Cahill, Moderator Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.law.ggu.edu/caldocs_agencies Part of the Criminal Procedure Commons Recommended Citation Cahill, Moderator, The onH . William J., "A Town Hall Meeting on Three Strikes and You're Out" (1994). California Agencies. Paper 230. http://digitalcommons.law.ggu.edu/caldocs_agencies/230 This Conference Proceeding is brought to you for free and open access by the California Documents at GGU Law Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in California Agencies by an authorized administrator of GGU Law Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. A TowN HALL MEETING ON THREE STRIKES AND You'RE OuT A Community Discussion of the New Law • The Initiative • Alternatives to Prison Moderator: The Honorable William J. Cahill San Francisco Superior Court PART I PERSPECTIVES ON THE THREE STRIKES PROPOSALS Pro£ Jerome H. Skolnick Thomas J. Orloff University of California, Boalt Hall School of Law Chief Assistant District Attorney, Alameda County President, American Society of Criminology Joe Klaas Assembly Member Bill Jones Polly Klaas Foundation Co-Author, AB971 James F. Campbell Campbell & Demetrick Chair, Criminal Justice Section MAY- 6 PART II ALTERNATIVES TO PRISON: Do THEY WORK? Mimi Silbert Michael Hennessey President, Delancey Street Foundation Sheriff. San Francisco Sid Smith Mitchell Salazar OMI Neighbors in Action Real Alternatives Program SPONSORS (Partial List) The Bar Association of San Francisco • The Commonwealth Club • The Helzel Family Foundation • The Recorder • Golden Gate University • Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights • Jack Berman Advocacy Center (a project of the American Jewish Congress) • Jewish Community Relations Council • American Jewish Committee • San Francisco La Raza Lawyers Association • Coalition for Civil Rights • San Francisco Chamber of Commerce • Charles Houston Bar Association TUESDAY, APRIL 19, 1994 • 4:00PM TO 6:00PM GOLDEN GATE UNIVERSITY • 536 MISSION STREET • SECOND FLOOR AUDITORIUM • SAN FRANCISCO PRESIDENT'S REPORT Three Strikes and You're Out? by Raymond C. Marshall In baseball it's, "three strikes and you're out!" This relatively simple coocept is tm­ As this issue goes to press, we are in the derstood by the most casual observer of midst of a flurry of activity on ''Three Strikes." America's national pastime. If Californi­ The Jones Bill has already been passed their this ans have way, rowever, same slo­ by both legislative truses and signed by gan will be used to formulate a criminal the governor. In additioo to provisioos justice policy mandating that three-time that eliminate suspensioo, pubatioo and convicted feloos be sentenced for life. In diversion and doubling the prescribed the rush to address the public's fears about pisoo term for any felooy foc secood of­ crime, few have paused long enough to fenders , the law counts as "strikes" of­ ask whether this policy makes sense. fenses coonnitted by 16 and 17 yearolds Let's examine the facts. Americans ev­ as well as foc non-violent felooies. secood felooy coovictioo and, if a persoo is erywhere are concerned about crime. Ac­ Scme ~.including the Klaas fami­ coovicted of a secood felooy and his pi<l' cording to news poliS cooducted in January ly, are urging the Governor to consider conviction was for a violent or serious other less costly measures, like the by the New York Times, CBS and~ felony, then regardless of age <r circum­ Rairey Bill, that do not penalize non-vio­ magazine, it is the single most important lent feloos as severely and are tougher oo staoces, the person is sentenced to coosecu­ problem facing the country, surpassing our the likes of Richard Allen Davis. The tive, not coocurrent prison terms, with no fears about lack of morals and values, the passage of any of the four other bills ~ibility of pubatioo. • economy, unemploytrent, and the budget would cancel oot the new law. Acoording to a January poll cmJucted by deficit And no wonder. On a daily basis Lawyers all over the state are gearing Marvin Fteld. an overwhelming 84 percent we are bombarded with news reports of up foc a coostitutiooal battle . of registered California voters favor the senseless and random acts of violence. Supporters of The "Three Strikes" ini­ ballot initiative, with 9 percent <wooed and These range from the more celebrated tiative that has already qualified foc voter 7 percent uOOecided. This is not surpising. cases like Polly Klaas and 101 Califoolia to approval are proceeding to see that the Fueled by a belief that the criminal justice the more routine incidents of petty theft, issue is placed oo the November ballot. system is not working and that laWYers, AltOOugh have a "Three Strike" law armed robbery, assaults and murder com­ we judges and politicians have no answers to now own the lxxi<s, the debate may be mitted in our neighborhoods, schools and ooly beginning. Please join the Bar As­ the questions posed by the state's current public streets. As a result, Americans of all sociation on April19 for a Town Hall crime rates, Californians understandably racial, ethnic, ecm:mic and class standing meeting and add your voice to the dis­ feel compelled to take matters into their are saying that they are "mad as hell and cussioo. own hands. Therein lies the seed of the I aren't going to take it any Ill<X'e!" Ediln" ''three-strikes-you're-out" initiative. It is Responding to the legitimate fears, angers clearly a trugh law. It is far less clear, row­ and frustrations of their constituents, at ever, wbether it is a law that makes sense. least 30 states, including Califoolia, New rently under coosideratioo by the state leg­ Public sentiment to the cootrary, a growing York, florida, New Jersey, Ohio, Kansas, islature. And with little public debate oo number of criminal experts, includi.Dg and North and Sooth Carolina, are )Xq)OS­ the merits of the {l'(llOOed law, Calif<rnians Philip Heymann. the fonner Deputy U.S. ing some fcnn of "three-6trikes-yoo're-out" in June will be asked to vote oo a ballot ini­ A1taney General, are saying that the initia­ measure. Politicians in both maja' parties tiative wbich, if passed, will: tive is a bad idea. and at all levels are falling over tb3nselves • double the sentence of felons with one A convincing argument can be made that to out-tough each other on the issue of prior conviction for a serious or violent the measure will oo little <I' oothing to re­ crime. Natiooal leaders as philaqlhically felooy; duce violent crime. This is because the diverse as Governor Wilson, Governor • reslrict time off for good behavioc; ''three-strikes" initiative respoods to crimes Cuomo, Senatoc Dole and President Clin­ • mandate that convictions for violent ooly after they have been coounitted. This ton have all sensed the public's outrage and crimes coonnitted by juveniles age 16 and back.oooc solution em; nothing, OOwever, come out in favor of more prisons, boot Older be coosidered as p:i<r coovictioos; to address many of the conditioos which camps, minimum and mandatory sen­ • and sw1 to jail fer life anyooe convicted lead to aiim; being comnitted in the first tences, and now - mandatory life sen­ of two prior serious or violent felony ploce, such as poverty, drug acklictioo, tm­ tences for certain repeat felons. charges. employtrent and the breakdown of fami­ In Califoolia alooe, there are five versions It would also eliminate plea bargaining in lies. Equally distwbing is that the initiative of the "three-strikes-you're-out" bill cur­ sane cases, OOI.lble prison sentences f<r the JXovides nothing in the way of rehabilita- The San llanci=Arrrrrey ~ 9 lion foc those inlnxluced to the ~al sys­ eluding construction of new prisons and the benefits of a "three-strikes " initiative tem, either in the form of drug therapy, job hiring of new prison guards at $55,(XX) a should not be oversold to a frightened public. training or psychological counseling. year in salary and benefits -could eventu­ Another failing of the initiative is that it The initiative is also criticized as being ally amount to ooe-third of the entire state will contribute to an already racially dis­ prohibitively expensive. By some esti­ budget." And finally, closer to hmle, it is parate sentencing pattern in our criminal mates, clooe to a fifth of all crime is ccm­ repocted that jail overcrowding has focced courts. Our experience with the Federal rnitted by children younger than 18. In ad­ the City to spend $7.75 million in fiscal Sentencing Guidelines is telling. Even the ditioo, according to the ~ swvey, most year 1993-1994 to rent jail space in Alame­ most casual oh>erver would have to agree felons are not coovicted a third time until da County and that the cost of penalties fCK that the randool way in which tnaildatay late in their criminal career, which peaks violating a court ooJer to reduce jail over­ rninirnurns are awlied by federal {X'OSecU­ between the ages of 18 and 23. What this crowding in San Francisco has cost the tors has resulted in more African-Ameri­ means is that at a time when local, state and City $1.486 million in penalties from cans and Hispanics being sentenced under federal dollars are at a minimum. we will November 1992 to October 1993. these provisions than whites accused of be forced to house, feed and support an By all accounts, the tnaildatay life sen­ similar crimes.