Hill

vThomas Hill challenges his sentence under the

new so-called “three strikes” law (Pen. Code, § 667, subds. (b)-(i); Stats. 1994, ch. 12, §§ 1-2). He received his first “strike” in 1991 when he was convicted of robbery (Pen. Code, §211). In the spring of 1994, he was charged in separate complaints with two new felonies, possession of cocaine (Health & Saf. Code, § 11350, subd. (a)) and petty theft with a prior theft-related conviction (Pen. Code, § 666; all further undesignated statutory references are to the Penal Code). He pled no contest to the charged offenses, admitted his prior conviction under section 667, subdivision (d), and the allegation of a prior prison term under section 667.5, subdivision (b). Defendant was sentenced to 48 months in prison, calculated as double the low term (16 months) for the drug offense plus double one-third the midterm (8 months) on the theft charge. The court imposed one year for the prison term enhancement and then struck it.

On appeal, defendant contends (1) the three strikes law does not apply to him because only felony convictions after March 7, 1994, may be used as “strikes”; (2) the law is unconstitutionally vague; (3) his…