Three Strikes Laws

WHEREAS, Three Strike Laws have been disproportionately applied to African Americans and other people of color; and

WHEREAS, the district attorney in each jurisdiction has the discretion to recommend imposition of the law as he or she sees fit; and

WHEREAS, three strike convictions are routinely applied to misdemeanors including, for example, the non-violent thefts of three video tapes and a $25.00 car alarm; and

WHEREAS, racial bias has been documented in numerous studies surrounding the criminal justice system; and

WHEREAS, African Americans are over-represented in all criminal justice statistics, including arrests, incarceration and executions, and one in four black men are under some form of criminal sanction, incarceration, probation or parole.

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the NAACP urge all of its units to work toward the repeal of all three-strike-laws and legislation.