United States v. Bradshaw

SELYA, Circuit Judge.

The poetess Nikki Giovanni once commented that: “Mistakes are a fact of life. It is the response to the error that counts.” Elaine Partnow, The Quotable Woman: 1800-1981 453 (1983). Defendant-appellant Joseph Bradshaw, a recidivist robber, would have done well to heed the message inherent in these words of wisdom. The tale follows.

In the court below, the government charged that the appellant repeated and compounded the error of his ways. A jury agreed, convicting him on an array of charges, including armed robbery and attempted murder. Invoking the “Three Strikes Law,” 18…