SAN DIEGO (KGTV) – Lengthy criminal records for Dwight Rhone, the 74-year-old man named a person of interest in the Southcrest human remains case, show Rhone faced something called California’s “three strike law” multiple times.
"It's a very complicated law. It's not easily applied,” Gretchen von Helms, Criminal Defense Attorney, said.
Von Helms has been a criminal defense attorney for 35 years and has represented clients facing the “three strike law.”
"You have to have two prior crimes of violence, so either a robbery, a burglary, a rape, something violent, a killing of some sort. So those crimes are violent crimes,” von Helms said.
This penal code is on some of the previous criminal cases against Rhone. ABC 10News has reported on Rhone’s long criminal history, which includes some violent crimes.
"Any time you pick up something else, they can strike you out, which means 25 to life as your sentence,” von Helms said.
But in Rhone’s previous cases, a judge didn't add a third strike for another violent crime. He's currently awaiting trial for a 2023 murder and is now a person of interest in this case.
ABC 10News asked von Helms how a judge decides or rules not to hand down a third strike, given Rhone’s long rap sheet and history of violent crime.
"Oftentimes they don't ask for to be struck out if the 3rd thing or the 4th thing or the 10th thing is small. So, if it is a crime of violence, say rape, robbery, kidnapping, something like that, then they will apply the three-strike law. But, let's say they steal a Coke from 7-Eleven, they often don't apply it,” von Helms said.
von Helms told ABC 10News Rhone's age, which would mean he could be eligible for early parole depending on the offense, and when the offenses happened in his criminal history timeline could've also played a factor.
"A judge could have decided on a, let’s say, a petty theft or something small, well, I'll give him X amount of time for this third thing, but not strike him out for this small thing because of his age,” von Helms said.
