FACT BRIEF

Did the three strikes law increase California’s prison population?

Friday, December 18, 2020

By Mia Dillon

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YES

California's three strikes rule, a criminal sentencing law passed in 1994, is cited as a reason for a large spike in the state's prison population in the 1990s.

The rule mandated sentences ranging from at least 25 years to life for all three-time repeat felony offenders. The law also doubled the sentence for second-time offenders.

After its implementation, 80,000 second-strikers and 7,500 third-strikers were sent to state prison, according to the state Legislative Analyst's Office. By 2004, second- and third-strikers made up about 26% of the state's incarcerated population. The growth rate slowed in the early 2000s, as second-time offenders affected by the rule completed sentences. A ballot initiative in 2012 eliminated life sentences for non-violent and less serious serious crimes. California's prison population decreased by 20% between 2000 and 2018, to 127,972.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.

Sources

California Legislative Analyst's Office: A primer on California's three strikes rule

Stanford: Three strikes basics

Vera Institute of Justice: California's incarceration trends

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