Avoiding Punishment for a Third Strike with a Romero Motion

In 1994, California’s voters decided that the state needed to get tougher on repeat offenders. They passed Proposition 184, which created the state’s “Three Strikes” sentencing system. The Three Strikes Law significantly increased the penalties for second and third serious felony convictions. If a person has two strikes and commits a third serious or violent felony, he or she can be sentenced to 25 years to life in prison. ¹

Just two years after Prop 184 passed, the California Supreme Court decided a case called People v. Romero. In that case, the court reasoned that because the California legislature had chosen not to prevent the courts from exercising their power to dismiss prior convictions to further the interests of justice, the courts were free to do so, even in cases involving felony strike convictions. ²

California Penal Code Section 1385

Under PC 1385, a judge (or the prosecuting attorney) has the discretion to bring a motion that an action should be dismissed “in the interests of justice.” The judge must state his or her reasons for doing so in open court so that the reasons will be part of the minutes of the case record.

Importantly, the Romero court did not provide an unlimited amount of discretion to the judge. Several factors must be examined before a Romero motion will be considered. These include:

• The defendant’s age at the time of the crime;
• The facts and circumstances of his or her current offense;
• Whether the defendant’s prior convictions stemmed from a single incident or over a longer period;
• Whether the defendant served a single prison term for his two prior strikes or multiple sentences;
• Whether the defendant’s acknowledged his or her wrongdoing at an early stage of the process and the extent to which he or she cooperated with law enforcement;
• The defendant’s prior history of drug or alcohol addiction and/or mental illness; and
• The nature of the injuries the defendant inflicted on his or her victim(s).

How Can an Attorney Help?

If you’re facing a potential second or third strike conviction, an experienced criminal defense attorney can help you attempt to convince the court that you deserve to have your prior conviction stricken. In a Romero motion, your attorney can ask the court to reexamine the earlier cases, and that your situation warrants reconsideration of your earlier crime in light of how you have reformed since the crime took place. Even if the current charge against you is serious, the trial judge may be open to reviewing the prior convictions, and an experienced attorney can help convince the judge to do so.

Contact the Defense Attorneys at Wallin & Klarich for Help

If you are facing a possible second or third strike conviction, you need an experienced and aggressive criminal defense attorney to help convince the court that you deserve another chance. At Wallin & Klarich, our attorneys have over 40 years of experience successfully helping clients obtain relief from their criminal history. We work tirelessly to help our clients make their case to the court that it is in the interest of justice to dismiss prior strike convictions. Let us help you, too. Contact us today for a free, no obligation consultation.

With offices in Los Angeles, Sherman Oaks, Torrance, Tustin, San Diego, Riverside, San Bernardino, Ventura, West Covina and Victorville, there is an experienced Wallin & Klarich criminal defense attorney near you no matter where you work or live.

Call us today at (877) 4-NO-JAIL or (877) 466-5245 for a free phone consultation. We will get through this together.

<sup>1. [See, Cal. Pen. Code sections 1192.7, 1192.8, and 667.5.]↩
2. [People v. Superior Court (Romero) (1996) 13 Cal.4th 497, 53 Cal.Rptr.2d 789; 917 P.2d 628; see also, People v. Williams (1998) 17 Cal.4th 148 , 69 Cal.Rptr.2d 917; 948 P.2d 429.]↩</sup>