Three Strikes

A surprising number of acts can be considered crimes at the discretion of the arresting officer and judging the seriousness of those crimes is often left to the discretion of the District Attorney.   Some decades back, a man addressing a crowd of protestors in San Francisco handed out candies and, when the candies were gone, started to hand out day-old bagels.  That’s when the police moved in.  The bagels were not individually wrapped and the man was not wearing gloves.  That’s a violation of the food service laws, normally a misdemeanor, but one that can be considered a felony at the discretion of the D.A.   He had, apparently, committed similar felonies in the past because he was initially charged under the Three Strikes law and faced 25 years to life.  So, OK, break your sandwich in half, give some to that homeless guy, he’s not an undercover cop waiting for you to do something illegal… is he?