Case Study: Ewing v. California, 538 U.S. 11 (2003)

CASE STUDY: EWING VS. CALIFORNIA 538 U.S (2003)
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Institution
Case Study: Ewing vs. California 538 U.S. (2003)
The following paper details the case of Ewing vs. California, the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution of the United States, and the California Three Strikes Law in detail (Ewing vs. California, 2003).
Ewing vs. California: The case
In 2003, while he was out on parole, Gary Ewing was convicted of stealing three high-priced golf clubs. Though his rap sheet had consisted of previous charges as well, dating back to 1984 on grounds of theft, and ending in December 1993, when he was convicted on one count of robbery and three counts of residential burglary and was sentenced to 9 years and eight months in prison. However, he was let out on parole before the end of his term. It was during this time that he stole three high priced golf clubs, and was convicted of a felony grand theft of personal property (CaseBriefs Staff, n.d.).
The judge could have, however, determined the actus reus (the guilty act, that is (Fradella & Neubauer, 2014)) as only a misdemeanour under a Californian Law that allows for certain offences, usually termed “wobblers” to be demoted to minor offenses.
However, upon finding that Ewing had, prior to this conviction, had been convicted for four serious felonies and violence, the prosecution cited the Three Strikes Law, and the trial court refused to treat Ewing’s past misdemeanours as inconsequential. Citing the pa…