The Violent Crime and Law Enforcement Act of 1994

Most states require one or more of the three felony convictions to be for violent crimes
in order for the mandatory sentence to be pronounced. Crimes that fall under the
category of "violent" include: murder, kidnapping, sexual abuse, rape, aggravated
robbery, and aggravated assault.
Some states include additional, lesser offenses that one would not normally see as
violent. For example, the list of crimes that count as serious or violent in the state of
California is much longer than that of other states, and consists of many lesser offenses
that include: firearm violations, burglary, simple robbery, arson, and providing hard
drugs to a minor, and drug possession. As another example, Texas does not require
any of the three felony convictions to be violent, but specifically excludes certain "state
jail felonies" from being counted for enhancement purposes.
One application of a three-strikes law was the Leonardo Andrade case in California in
2009. In this case, Leandro Andrade attempted to rob $153 in videotapes from two San
Bernardino K-Mart stores. He was charged under California's three-strikes law because
of his criminal history concerning drugs and other burglaries. Because of his past
criminal records, he was sentenced to 50 years in prison with no parole after this last
burglary of K-Mart. Although this sentencing was disputed by Erwin Chemerinsky, who
represented Andrade, as cruel and unusual punishment under the 8th Amendment, the
Supreme Court ruled in support for the life sentencing.
In 1995, Sioux City, Iowa native Tommy Lee Farmer, a professional criminal who had
served 43 years in prison for murder and armed robbery was the first person in the
United States to be convicted under the federal three-strikes law when he was
sentenced to life in prison for an attempted robbery at an eastern Iowa convenience
store. He was prosecuted by Stephen J. Rapp, a US Attorney appointed by Clinton. The
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