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 Arizona, the three-strikes law is designed to increase the prison sentences of persons convicted of a felony who have been previously convicted of serious criminal offenses. The state does not have a 'three-strikes' statute that is identical to the federal law, but it does have statutes that impose harsher sentences on repeat offenders. Arizona Revised Statutes (ARS) §13-703 and §13-704 outline sentencing enhancements for dangerous and repetitive offenders. Under these statutes, a person who commits a third or subsequent 'serious' or 'violent' felony may face significantly increased prison time. The specific offenses that qualify as 'serious' or 'violent' are defined in ARS §13-706. These include crimes such as murder, sexual assault, armed robbery, and other offenses involving the use or threat of violence. The federal three-strikes law, codified at 18 U.S.C. §3559(c), mandates a life sentence for certain repeat offenders who have been convicted in federal court of a serious violent felony and have two or more previous convictions for serious violent felonies or serious drug offenses. The federal definition of serious violent felonies includes a range of offenses such as murder, sexual abuse, kidnapping, and robbery, among others. It's important for individuals in Arizona to be aware of both state and federal regulations, as they could be subject to the harsher sentencing provisions of either, depending on the jurisdiction and nature of their offenses.