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Proposition 36, also titled A Change in the "Three Strikes Law” Initiative, was a California ballot measure that modified California’s Three Strikes Law in November 2012. This law punishes habitual offenders by establishing sentence escalation for felonies that were classified as “strikes”, and a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 to life for a third strike offence. Proposition 36 adjusted the law so that in order to be classified as a third strike, the offence must be a “serious or violent felony”. This serious or violent clause does not apply to defendants previously convicted of rape, murder or child molestation. Additionally, the initiative added a provision in the California Penal Code that allows people currently serving life sentences as a result of a nonviolent or nonserious third strike offences to obtain a shorter sentence through a review process. Supporters of the proposition included Steve Cooley, the LA district attorney at the time, George Soros, and the NAACP.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://www.fixthreestrikes.com/endorsements )〕 Opponents included Henry T. Nicholas, the author of California's Victims Bill of Rights, California Police Chief’s Association and the Criminal Justice Legal Foundation.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://web.archive.org/web/20130103181514/http://www.savethreestrikes.com/endorsements.php )〕 The proposition was passed on November 6, 2012, with 8,575,619 people (69.3%) voting Yes and 3,798,218 people (30.7%) voting No.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/sov/2012-general/sov-complete.pdf )〕 ==Three Strikes Law== Proposition 36 was predated by two major trends: rapidly increasing incarceration rates and the expansion of the private prison industry. Beginning in the late 1970s, President Richard Nixon announced the “war on drugs”, which led to tough on crime policies including mandatory minimum sentencing, harsh penalties barring inmates from being granted parole or probation, and stricter punishments for drug users both in and out of the prison.In response to growing numbers of inmates, the private prison industry has expanded nearly 1600% between 1990-2009. Today, private prison companies are responsible for about 6% of state prisoners and 16% of federal prisoners. Corrections Corporation of America (CCA), for example, owns and operates 66 facilities, and it earned $1.7 billion in revenue in 2011. Even when compared to the rate of overall growth in incarceration, the rate of private prison expansion far outpaced it. One direct result of this tough on crime mentality was the creation of what are known as Three Strikes laws. Between December 1993 and January 1996, twenty-four states passed such laws which are designed to punish repeat felons. Under these laws, criminals convicted of a second felony must receive a sentence twice as harsh as a first time offender. A criminal convicted of a third felony, regardless of its violence or severity, will be sentenced to a mandatory minimum of 25 years to life imprisonment. These laws limit the judges’ ability to exercise discretion when sentencing repeat criminals. The first Three Strike Law was passed in Washington State with overwhelming support from the voters. Its origin was attributed to the public outrage over the murder of Diane Ballasiotes, who was kidnapped, raped, and brutally stabbed by Gene Kane Jr., an escapee from Seattle work-release. Similar outrage in California over the murder of Kim Reynolds and Polly Klaas, both of whom were murdered by repeat felons, led to the introduction and passage of three strikes laws in California. The three strikes laws were representative of prevailing public dissatisfaction with the State’s current policies regarding repeat offenders. Studies suggest that the source of public concern lies in judgment about the severity of the crime problem and the ineffectiveness of the courts. Psychologists Zimring and Hawkins suggest that people are motivated to protect themselves and their communities from threats and danger resulting in the support for severe punishment.〔 Also, people are motivated to punish criminals because rule-breaking behavior poses a threat to the moral cohesion of society and because punishment reasserts social value and the obligation to obey social rules.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「California Proposition 36 (2012)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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