A “strike” offense refers to a serious felony or a violent felony as defined under California’s Three Strikes law.
What Is a “Strike” Offense in California?
The governing statutes are:
Three Strikes Law
Mirror Three Strikes provisions
List of “serious” felonies
List of “violent” felonies
If a person is convicted of a felony that qualifies under those statutes, it becomes a “strike.” Prior strike convictions dramatically increase sentencing exposure in future cases and reduce the ability of present cases to resolve for informal (non-prison) sentences.
Step One: What Is a “Serious Felony”?
The list of serious felonies appears in Penal Code § 1192.7(c). This section enumerates specific crimes and certain enhancements that qualify as “serious.” The list includes:
- Murder or voluntary manslaughter
- Mayhem
- Rape and specified sex offenses
- Lewd acts on a child
- Any felony punishable by death or life imprisonment
- Any felony where the defendant personally used a firearm
- Any felony where the defendant personally inflicted great bodily injury
- Residential burglary
- Robbery
- Arson
- Kidnapping
- Carjacking
- Assault with intent to commit rape or robbery
- Criminal threats (PC § 422)
- Certain gang offenses
- Attempted murder
- Exploding a destructive device with intent to injure
The statute is detailed and offense-specific. Some crimes become “serious” only if certain elements are present (e.g., personal use of a firearm or personal infliction of GBI).
Step Two: What Is a “Violent Felony”?
The list of violent felonies appears in Penal Code § 667.5(c). Violent felonies are a narrower category than serious felonies and generally involve:
- Murder
- Voluntary manslaughter
- Mayhem
- Rape and specified sex crimes
- Lewd acts on a child by force
- Any robbery
- Arson
- Kidnapping
- Carjacking
- Assault with a firearm
- Assault with a machine gun on a peace officer
- Certain residential burglaries (when another person is present)
- Any felony punishable by death or life imprisonment
- Any felony where the defendant inflicts great bodily injury
- Any felony where the defendant uses a firearm
Violent felonies also affect credit earning limitations under Penal Code § 2933.1 (15% maximum credits).
Felonies That Qualify as BOTH Serious and Violent
Many offenses appear in both § 1192.7(c) and § 667.5(c). Common examples include:
- Murder (PC § 187)
- Voluntary manslaughter (PC § 192(a))
- Mayhem (PC § 203)
- Rape (PC § 261)
- Lewd acts on a child by force (PC § 288(b))
- Robbery (PC § 211)
- Carjacking (PC § 215)
- Kidnapping (PC § 207, § 209)
- Arson of an inhabited structure (PC § 451)
- Assault with a firearm (PC § 245(a)(2))
- Any felony with personal infliction of great bodily injury
- Any felony with personal firearm use
If an offense qualifies under either statute, it counts as a strike. If it qualifies under both, it still counts as one strike—but the violent classification affects custody credits and sentencing structure.
How the Three Strikes Law Works
Under Penal Code § 667(b)–(i) and § 1170.12:
One Prior Strike
If a defendant has one prior strike conviction and is convicted of any new felony:
- The new felony sentence is doubled
- The sentence for the current felony must be served in state prison instead of county jail
- The defendant must serve at least 80% of the sentence (depending on classification)
- The prior strike must have been pled and proven
Two Prior Strikes
If a defendant has two prior strikes and commits a new felony:
- The sentence becomes 25 years to life (if the new charge is also a strike)
- All the same conditions as if the person had 1 strike.
Does a Strike Restrict Probation Eligibility?
Yes, in most cases. Under Penal Code § 1203(e), certain serious or violent felonies limit probation eligibility unless the court finds unusual circumstances.
Additionally, judges are significantly less likely to grant probation in strike cases and having a prior strike status weighs heavily against probation. However, probation is not categorically barred in all strike cases. It will depends on the current offense, the prior history, and the context of the present case.
Do Strike Offenses Disallow “1170(h)” County Prison Sentences?
Generally, yes. Under Penal Code § 1170(h), certain felony offenses that used to be “prison only” charges can now be served in a county jail. Moreover, they could be sentenced in a “blended fashion” (some in custody, some out-of-custody). Felonies that are serious or violent (as defined in § 1192.7(c) and § 667.5(c)) are not eligible for county jail (“realignment”) sentences and must be served in state prison.
If a felony is not serious or violent but the defendant has a prior strike, the sentencing structure may still be affected—but the strike itself does not automatically convert every case into state prison. The underlying felony classification controls.
Can Strike Sentences Run Concurrently?
It depends on the statute and facts.
The Three Strikes law requires:
- The base term to be doubled (for one strike)
- Certain enhancements to run consecutive
However:
- Courts retain discretion in some multi-count situations to run base terms concurrently
- Some offenses (especially violent felonies) require consecutive sentencing under other statutes
- If multiple serious felony enhancements apply, those must run consecutive
There is no blanket rule that all strike cases require consecutive sentencing, but exposure increases significantly.
Why Strike Allegations Matter Strategically
A strike allegation:
- Doubles exposure
- Increases plea leverage for the prosecution
- Limits sentencing flexibility
- Creates lifetime future consequences
Even if the immediate sentence seems manageable, a strike conviction can permanently alter exposure in any future case. Strike priors can sometimes be dismissed under People v. Superior Court (Romero) and Penal Code § 1385, but that requires a formal motion and judicial discretion to functionally ignore the prior strike. This kind of motion takes a significant amount of effort and nuance and is case and client specific. (This is known as a “Romero Motion”)
Next Step
If you are facing a serious or violent felony allegation—or need to understand whether a prior conviction qualifies as a strike and how that affects your exposure—you can send me your information here:
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