Constitutional Law
Nov. 16, 2001
Behind Bars
On Nov. 2, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, for the first time, invalidated a sentence under California's three-strikes law as cruel and unusual punishment in violation of the Eighth Amendment. Andrade v. Attorney General of the State of California, 2001 U.S.App.LEXIS 23720 (9th Cir. Nov. 2, 2001). The court ruled that it was "grossly excessive" to sentence a man to 50 years to life in prison for stealing $153 worth of videotapes.
Erwin Chemerinsky
Dean and Jesse H. Choper Distinguished Professor of Law
UC Berkeley School of Law
Erwin's most recent book is "Worse Than Nothing: The Dangerous Fallacy of Originalism." He is also the author of "Closing the Courthouse," (Yale University Press 2017).
On Nov. 2, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, for the first time, invalidated a sentence under California's three-strikes law as cruel and unusual punishment in violation of the Eighth Amendment. Andrade v. Attorney General of the State of California, 2001 U.S.App.LEXIS 23720 (9th Cir. ...
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