Tuesday, August 12, 2014

People v. Quinones (Cal. Ct. App. - Aug. 11, 2013)

My predominant reaction to this opinion was one of nostalgia.  Busted for possessing heroin.  It seems so '70s.

Sure, the stuff is (sadly) making a comeback.  Among the yuppie crowd, apparently.  Or whatever they're called these days.  Hipsters, I think.  (Or is that so '00s?)

Plus, it's not like Humberto Quinones was out slinging the stuff in the modern era.  He was busted back in 1996.  It's just that after twenty-plus years in prison, he'd like to get out.  Sentenced as a three-striker to 75 years in prison, he'd like relief under Proposition 36.

No dice.  He had a loaded gun in his waistband at the time.  That keeps you in prison forever.

Which means that Quinones fades into history.  Like so many other memories.