Реферат: Three Strikes You

get enough signatures that the proposal would be put on the November, 1994

election ballot. The men had hundreds of thousands of signatures that lead

to the induction of the proposal to the ballot as “Prop 184.” The men made

a few minor changes to the proposal but in the end it basically read as

before. The men knew they had to keep it simple because they knew people

would not vote for something they could not understand.

There is a lot of talk about serious and

violent felonies in the law and there are certain offenses that must be

met in order to qualify as a serious or violent felony. The felonies that

would fall under both categories would be those that are beyond misdemeanors

and/or carry an extensive sentence.

With the passage of “Three strikes” some

argued that it would ignite an increase in violence against law enforcement

officers, putting them in danger as they tried to maintain public safety.

The American Civil Liberties Union argued that criminals facing a life

sentence if they were to be convicted would be far more likely to resist

arrest, assault officers and kill witnesses. Since the enactment of the

law violence against law enforcement officers has not risen but fallen.

In the three years prior to the law assault against law enforcers dropped

14.9% while since the enactment it has dropped 11.9%, setting a downward

trend.

Some studies have argued that the population

of prisons and jails will rise substantially because of the increased prison

sentences, limitations on the ability of repeat offenders to earn credits

to reduce time, and prisoners required to be sentenced to prison rather

than jails. Despite predictions to the contrary, the growth in the prison

population since the enactment has slowed. In the four years prior to the

law the prison population increased by 37%. Since the enactment the prison

population has grown only 32%. That is near the percentage for the nation