What, you ask, does Perlin mean by "what the three-strikes law all about"? Quite simply, the theft of a stick of lip balm, some breath freshener, and a bottle of cheap wine, total value $11.53. Herrera's incarceration will probably cost state taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars.
When the three-strikes law was passed, I remember reading about it being trumpeted as a way to get violent criminals off the streets for good. Now, perhaps Herrera is still a violent man. Maybe he really is a bad guy. He does have 17 convictions for "serious" felonies in his past. But before I commit to spending truckloads of money to incarcerate someone, I'd like a better indication of bottomless evil than twelve bucks' worth of dime store merchandise.
Feh. We didn't make the football playoffs. We were voted 13th in a field of 12. But two south bay teams (Chula Vista and Bonita Vista,) who a) play a seriously weaker schedule, and 2: we'd smoke on the field, did make it.