OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) — Dozens of third-strike prisoners serving life without parole after a second-degree burglary conviction are entitled to new sentencing hearings under a bill signed by Gov. Jay Inslee. Second-degree burglary used to be considered one of Washington’s most serious offenses, a conviction of which led to one of three “strikes” that lead to persistent offenders being sentenced to life without parole. The crime typically doesn’t involve a weapon or injury, and lawmakers in 2019 removed it as a most serious offense as they reconsidered the tough-on-crime policies of the past. At the time, however, lawmakers declined to allow those already serving life without parole after a second-degree robbery conviction to be resentenced.
New sentences coming for 3rd-strikers convicted of burglary
