THIRD STRIKE BEING RECONSIDERED

A review of court documents reveals more about the three-strikes defendant
who will be resentenced today in South Lake Tahoe.

Jeffrey Howard Gautier, 35, will appear before El Dorado County Judge
Suzanne Kingsbury after he was granted a petition for a writ of habeas
corpus.

Gautier was sentenced in 1998 to 25 years to life in prison by Superior
Court Judge Eddie T. Keller. Gautier was found guilty of a felony --
smuggling 5.9 grams of marijuana into the El Dorado County Jail -- when he
reported to serve his sentence Oct. 29, 1997, for driving with a suspended
license.

He was sentenced to the felony under California's Three Strikes law. For a
second serious or violent felony, conviction means a sentence can be
doubled. A third strike -- any felony -- and a defendant can be sentenced
for the minimum 25 years to life.

District Attorney Gary Lacy said he would appear today asking for the
court's reconsideration on the resentencing because the court of appeals
already considered the issue.

In granting the petition for the writ, Judge Kingsbury wrote: "The Court
believes that possession of 5.9 grams of marijuana, even if brought into a
jail, does not present a significant danger to society.

"While petitioner has a long criminal history, 28 years to life for
possession of this small amount of marijuana does shock the conscience of
this Court."

The U.S. Supreme Court has said the justices will be looking at two
California three-strike cases where the third felony appeared to be
relatively minor. The constitutional issue is the Eighth Amendment barring
cruel and unusual punishment.

Gautier admitted to two prior convictions for first-degree burglary, one
prior conviction for assault with a deadly weapon and three prior prison
terms.

But he appealed on the grounds that a motion to suppress could not be fully
litigated, and the motion was not granted.

"He denied that any of his prior convictions were serious or violent
felonies within the meaning of the Three Strikes law," wrote Daniel M.
Kolkey, one of the three associate justices of the California Court of
Appeal, Third Appellate District, who ruled on Gautier's appeal.

The trial court found that Gautier's prior assault conviction qualified as a
serious felony within the meaning of the Three Strikes law, Kolkey wrote.

The appeals court found Gautier's sentence of 28 years to life did not
constitute cruel and unusual punishment.