Help for Comrades with 3 Strikes

Greetings! I am a new associate of MIM. I must say that it's truly an honor for me to be a part of this movement that sees things for what they really are and not what they present themselves to be.

When I received and read my first copy of MIM Notes I immediately realized that, for all of us held in captivity and all other oppressed people throughout the world, MIM is a vital element in our struggles. MIM has blessed us with a forum to share knowledge and information (e.g. MIM Notes), and it provides us with a channel to organize somewhat (e.g. between the lines of Under Lock and Key).

Under Lock and Key reveals our experiences. Notably, in every state in this country, in every one of these United Snakes prisons, we are all having the same experience. We are all witnesses to and experiencing torture, beatings, beatings while being handcuffed, sexual assaults, the planting of weapons and other forms of so-called contraband on us, the placing of false charges upon us, etc.

Just recently the rest of the world also got a glimpse of the daily horrors we in America's criminal system of justice are subjected to in the Abu Ghraib (Iraqi Prison) scandal. Of course, the government line was that Iraqi prisoner abuses were rare "isolated incidents." However, when the same torture, beatings and abuses occur daily in every one of the prisons we are in, this evidence tells a different story.

The evidence tells us that the imperialists are well organized and that they run their prisons throughout the world according to a well thought out plan. In their prisons, as well as in all of their institutions, the imperialists clearly aim to oppress, repress, exploit and abuse us for all eternity. It's our duty, in order to become a formidable force, seize power, and regain our freedom and liberty that we unite and organize. We must fight fire with fire: Force with Force!

Finally, in the MIM fight against the injustice system and campaign to end "Three Strikes Laws" I share with you the following legal info:

If you have pled guilty or were found guilty and received a life sentence because the trial judge found an aggravating circumstance, you may have an appealable issue because of the recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions in Apprendi v. New Jersey , 530 U.S. 466, and Ring v. Arizona , 536 U.S. 584, (see also Blakely v. Washington , 542 U.S. 296).

In Apprendi , the Supreme Court looked at a state statute requiring a judge to impose a longer sentence if the judge found, by a preponderance of the evidence that the crime was in the nature of a bias crime. The court held that the statue violated the defendants due process rights, holding that "other than the fact of a prior conviction, any fact that increases the penalty for a crime beyond the statutory maximum must be submitted to the jury and judged against the reasonable doubt standard." Apprendi , 530 at 469.

In Ring , the court struck down a death penalty statute that allowed the sentencing judge to decided whether certain facts had been proven. The Supreme Court held that, if an increase in a defendant’s punishment depends on a finding of fact, that fact must be found by a jury beyond a reasonable doubt. Ring , 536 US at 586.

In summary, the court's position is that juries, not judges, must find the facts that permit a court to impose enhanced sentences, and such facts must be found beyond a reasonable doubt.

- a NY prisoner, August 2005

MIM adds: We thank this comrade for sharing this legal information with Under Lock and Key. Contributions like this help us build a Prisoner's Legal Clinic to serve our comrades behind bars. While these cases may be helpful for some, we of course oppose any forms of "3 strikes" or double jeopardy regardless of who gets to make the decision.