Some state legislatures—and the United States Congress—have enacted so-called three-strikes laws (or three strikes, you’re out laws) to help law enforcement deal with violent repeat offenders—sometimes called persistent offenders, or prior and persistent offenders. The federal three-strikes law is a statute—also known as the Violent Crime Control Act—located in the United States Code at 18 U.S.C. §3559(c).

Under the federal three-strikes law, a person who is convicted in federal court of a serious violent felony and who has previously been convicted (in state or federal court) of (1) two or more serious violent felonies, or (2) one or more serious violent felonies and one or more serious drug offenses—will receive a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment.

Under the federal three-strikes law, serious violent felonies generally include federal or state offenses of (1) murder; (2) manslaughter (other than involuntary manslaughter); (3) assault with intent to commit murder; (4) assault with intent to commit rape; (5) sexual abuse and aggravated sexual abuse; (6) abusive sexual contact; (7) kidnapping; (8) aircraft piracy; (9) robbery; (10) carjacking; (11) extortion; (12) arson; (13) illegal firearms use; (14) illegal firearms possession; (15) attempt, conspiracy, or solicitation to commit any of these criminal offenses; and (16) any other offense punishable by a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years or more that has as an element the use, attempted use, or threatened use of physical force against another person, or that involves a substantial risk that physical force against another person may be used in the course of committing the offense.

Three-strikes laws enacted by state legislatures vary from state to state—including what constitutes a strike offense—and are generally located in a state’s statutes—often in the penal or criminal code.

In Colorado, the three-strikes law is designed to impose harsher sentences on repeat offenders of serious crimes. While Colorado does not have a 'three-strikes' law that is identical to the federal statute, it does have habitual criminal statutes that increase penalties for repeat offenders. Under Colorado Revised Statutes (C.R.S.) 18-1.3-801, an individual may be adjudicated as a habitual criminal if they have been convicted of multiple felonies within a certain time frame. The law stipulates that a person convicted of a third felony may face a sentence enhancement that results in a mandatory prison term that is four times the maximum of the presumptive range for the class of felony of the new conviction. For a fourth or subsequent felony conviction, the mandatory prison term is life imprisonment. The specific felonies that trigger these enhanced penalties can include violent crimes similar to those listed in the federal three-strikes law, such as murder, sexual assault, and robbery, among others. It's important to note that the application of habitual criminal statutes can be complex and may vary based on the specific circumstances of each case. An attorney can provide detailed guidance on how these laws might apply in a particular situation.