Julious (Ray) Whiten  has been given a 25 year to life  under California's "Three Strikes" law, with his third strike resulting from a non-violent crime from being in the presence of a fire arm resulting in a  charged  being in possession of a firearm.

Background: Julious with the help of his father had just began working for International Longshore & Warehouse Union-Pacific Maritime Association, (ILWU-PMA) in Long Beach, the job of his dreams.  He was so exciting and learning so much about the work of loading ships on the water front.  He was happy to be share the support of his parents as he was starting a new phase of his life.

 After Memorial Day, Julious drove his girl friend home from Southern California to Sacramento. When they arrived at her home in Sacramento it has been broken into by their friend and neighbor. Julious confronted the person and told him to pay for the repairs and an argument started. The girl friend called the police to report the break in. The police came, took a report and left.  The police returned after receiving a call from the person who broke into the house who reported a weapon was in the house.  The police entered the house without a warrant or permission from the girlfriend and arrested Julious. The arrest of Julious, who was 36 years old at the time, being sentenced to 25 years to life under California's extreme harsh and severe "Three Strikes" law - for being a felon in possession of a weapon rather than being in the location  where a  weapon was present .

 At the time, many also believed Julious was treated unfairly by the courts because the judge allowed the police to lie under oath about entering his girl friend’s house without a warrant or permission. Then believing the person who robbed his girlfriends house, who planted the gun in the house and called the police saying the gun belonged to Julious.

 California's "Three Strikes" law is the harshest in the nation and routinely results in multiple mandatory sentences for non-violent offenders.

Now, 13 years later at 49 years old, Ray has missed out on marring his girlfriend, lost the job of his dream working  for ILWU-PMA and sent so far away from family and friends.   He missed being able to see family and friends because he was sent to the most remote and harsh facilities. Visiting was a financial barriers because the family did not have the money or resources to make the expensive visit. Therefore he missed seeing family for years. There were no interactions to share holidays, graduations, proms, birthdays, Julious was also deprived of seeing his parents, brothers, sisters, cousins, aunts, Uncles and the deaths of grandparents.

 Prop 36 was denied to Julious who had to go back to the same Judge who gave him 25 years to life. She was very sarcastic and said, “No , you are a risk to public safety, but good luck”.  A few years later Julious came close to death when violently attacked and stabbed by an inmate while the prison guards at High Desert Prison watched; then fired their weapons several times at Julious, not the inmate stabbing him.

 With no good time credits allowed for the majority of his sentence (fortunately, Prop 57 changed this and he has accrued 10 months so far), Julious  will have served 25 years before attaining eligibility for parole, at a cost of nearly $2 million to California taxpayers.

Julious has filed for a sentence commutation with Governor Jerry Brown. We are asking family members, friends and every person in California who believe in Prison Reform for non-violent crimes to sign this petition and support us in asking Governor Brown to please commute Julious Ray Whiten's sentence. Thank you.