Carmony

This case raises the question whether there is an offense so minor that it cannot trigger the imposition of a recidivist penalty without violating the cruel and/or unusual punishment prohibitions of the United States and California Constitutions.

Although defendant had registered his correct address as a sex offender with the police one month before his birthday, as required by law (former Pen. Code, § 290, subd. (a)(1)(A)), 1 he failed to “update” his registration with the same information within five working days of his birthday as also required by law. (Former Pen. Code, § 290, subd. (a)(1)(C).) Defendant’s parole agent was aware defendant’s registration information had not changed and in fact arrested defendant at the address where he was registered.

Defendant pled guilty to the charge of failing to register within five days of his birthday and admitted he had suffered three prior serious or violent felony *1072 convictions (Pen. Code, §§ 667.5, subd. (c) and 1192.7, subd. (c)) 2 and had served a prior prison term. (§ 667.5, subd. (b).) The trial court sentenced him under the “Three Strikes” law to a prison term of 25 years to life (§§ 667, subds. (b)-(i), 1170.12)…

I concur with and join part II of the majority opinion but respectfully dissent as to part I. In my view, the sentence imposed on this defendant did not violate the federal proscription on cruel and unusual punishment or the state proscription on cruel or unusual punishment.

United States Constitution

An indeterminate 25-years-to-life sentence under the “Three Strikes” law does not violate the United States Constitution. (Ewing v. California (2003) *1090 538 U.S. 11, 29-31 [ 155 L.Ed.2d 108, 122-123 , 123 S.Ct. 1179 ].) This court has already rejected, in People v. Meeks (2004) 123 Cal.App.4th 695 [ 20 Cal.Rptr.3d 445 ], the proposition the majority now embraces. “[A] sentence of 25 years to life in prison for failing to register cannot be considered a sentence that is grossly disproportionate to his crime in light of his long and serious criminal history.” (Id. at p. 708.) The majority’s weak rationalization for departing from precedent, offered in a footnote, is that “Meeks failed to register after changing his residence and therefore, unlike in the present case, law enforcement authorities did not have Meeks’s correct address and information.” (Maj. opn., ante, at p. 1082,…

Certified for Partial Publication. [*]

BLEASE, Acting P.J.

This case raises the question whether there is an offense so minor that it cannot trigger the imposition of a recidivist penalty without violating the cruel and/or unusual punishment prohibitions of the United States and California Constitutions.

Although defendant had registered his correct address as a sex offender with the police one month before his birthday, as required by law (former Pen.Code, § 290, subd. (a)(1)(A)) [1] , he failed to "update" his registration with the same information within five working days of his birthday as also required by law. (Former Pen.Code, § 290, subd. (a)(1)(C).) Defendant's parole agent was aware defendant's registration information had not changed and in fact arrested defendant at the address where he was registered.

Defendant pled guilty to the charge of failing to register within five days of his birthday and admitted he had suffered three prior serious or violent felony convictions (Pen.Code, §§ 667.5, subd. (c) and 1192.7, subd. (c)) [2] and had served a prior prison term. (§ 667.5, subd. (b).) The trial court sentenced him under the "Three Strikes" law to a prison term of…