Three Strikes Law
The attorneys at Nolan, Armstrong & Barton have extensive experience representing clients who are charged under California's Three Strikes statute. (Penal Code section 667.) This law provides for severely escalating penalties for individuals who have prior convictions for felonies that qualify as "serious" or "violent" crimes. Our attorneys have the professional expertise required to assess both the present and long term consequences for clients charged with crimes that qualify as "strikes." In our handling of Three Strike cases, we work with a client’s family members and outside professionals to compile a social history of the client. Quite often, showing the court the history of how and why a person has been convicted of multiple felonies provides the judge with an opportunity to better understand the person before him and a good reason to impose a more lenient sentence. Through both aggressive negotiation and motion practice (People v. Superior Court (Romero) (1996) 13 Cal. 4th 497), we have convinced prosecutors and courts to dismiss allegations of prior strikes, thus winning shorter, determinate sentences for clients who otherwise faced long, indeterminate prison terms. Our firm takes great pride in our history of successful advocacy for clients who are charged under the Three Strikes law.