Judge Frees Homeless Man Facing Life in Prison for Stealing Food

A Los Angeles judge has freed a man convicted of stealing food from a church.

The case of Gregory Taylor, 48, who was mentally ill, drug-addicted and homeless when caught trying to pry open the church’s doors with a wooden board 13 years ago, has often been cited as an example of California’s three strikes law leading to disproportionate sentences for relatively minor crimes. He told arresting officers he was hungry and wanted something to eat. At the time, a priest from the church, where Taylor was a regular and occasionally volunteered, pleaded that a life sentence “would not be just or merciful,” saying Taylor was “a peaceful man” and “a very good person who may have made mistakes.”

Gregory's attorney argued the crime was misdemeanor trespassing because he thought he had the right to take food. Because of two prior robbery convictions in the 1980s, the burglary was Gregory's third strike under California sentencing laws, requiring a sentence of 25 years to life.


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