Cal. Codes » Penal Code / PART 1. OF CRIMES AND PUNISHMENTS / TITLE 16. GENERAL PROVISIONS
California Codes

Cal. Penal Code § 667.7 (2026)

General Provisions — Of Crimes And Punishments

✓ current as of May 2026
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(a)Any person convicted of a felony in which the person inflicted great bodily injury as provided in Section 12022.53 or 12022.7, or personally used force which was likely to produce great bodily injury, who has served two or more prior separate prison terms as defined in Section 667.5 for the crime of murder; attempted murder; voluntary manslaughter; mayhem; rape by force, violence, or fear of immediate and unlawful bodily injury on the victim or another person; oral copulation by force, violence, duress, menace, or fear of immediate and unlawful bodily injury on the victim or another person; sodomy by force, violence, duress, menace, or fear of immediate and unlawful bodily injury on the victim or another person; lewd acts on a child under the age of 14 years by use of force, violence, duress, menace, or fear of immediate and unlawful bodily injury on the victim or another person; a violation of subdivision (a) of Section 289 where the act is accomplished against the victim’s will by means of force, violence, duress, menace, or fear of immediate and unlawful bodily injury on the victim or another person; kidnapping as punished in former subdivision (d) of Section 208, or for ransom, extortion, or robbery; robbery involving the use of force or a deadly weapon; carjacking involving the use of a deadly weapon; assault with intent to commit murder; assault with a deadly weapon; assault with a force likely to produce great bodily injury; assault with intent to commit rape, sodomy, oral copulation, sexual penetration in violation of Section 289, or lewd and lascivious acts on a child; arson of a structure; escape or attempted escape by an inmate with force or violence in violation of subdivision (a) of Section 4530, or of Section 4532; exploding a destructive device with intent to murder in violation of Section 18745; exploding a destructive device which causes bodily injury in violation of Section 18750, or mayhem or great bodily injury in violation of Section 18755; exploding a destructive device with intent to injure, intimidate, or terrify, in violation of Section 18740; any felony in which the person inflicted great bodily injury as provided in Section 12022.53 or 12022.7; or any felony punishable by death or life imprisonment with or without the possibility of parole is a habitual offender and shall be punished as follows:

(1)A person who served two prior separate prison terms shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for life and shall not be eligible for release on parole for 20 years, or the term determined by the court pursuant to Section 1170 for the underlying conviction, including any enhancement applicable under Chapter 4.5 (commencing with Section 1170) of Title 7 of Part 2, or any period prescribed by Section 190 or 3046, whichever is greatest. Article 2.5 (commencing with Section 2930) of Chapter 7 of Title 1 of Part 3 shall apply to reduce any minimum term in a state prison imposed pursuant to this section, but the person shall not otherwise be released on parole prior to that time.

(2)Any person convicted of a felony specified in this subdivision who has served three or more prior separate prison terms, as defined in Section 667.5, for the crimes specified in subdivision (a) of this section shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for life without the possibility of parole.

(b)This section shall not prevent the imposition of the punishment of death or imprisonment for life without the possibility of parole. No prior prison term shall be used for this determination which was served prior to a period of 10 years in which the person remained free of both prison custody and the commission of an offense which results in a felony conviction. As used in this section, a commitment to the Department of the Youth Authority after conviction for a felony shall constitute a prior prison term. The term imposed under this section shall be imposed only if the prior prison terms are alleged under this section in the accusatory pleading, and either admitted by the defendant in open court, or found to be true by the jury trying the issue of guilt or by the court where guilt is established by a plea of guilty or nolo contendere or by a trial by the court sitting without a jury.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 9 cases (3 in the last 5 years), 1988–2025 · leading case: State v. Moretti, 446 P.3d 609 (Wash. 2019).
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State v. Moretti, 446 P.3d 609 (Wash. 2019). · cites it 2× “Although there was previously a suggestion that he may have a mild intellectual disability, his most recent forensic mental health evaluation reported that he seemed to be pretending to be unable to remember details about the charges against him and found that this was "not a…”
People v. Martinez, 990 P.2d 563 (Cal. 2000). “In this case, we consider whether uncertified computer printouts reporting criminal history information are admissible as evidence that a defendant alleged to be a habitual offender (Pen.Code, § 667.7) [1] served prison terms for prior felony convictions.”
State v. Reynolds, 535 P.3d 427 (Wash. 2023). “CAL. PENAL CODE § 667.7(a)(1). In other words, these states all require LWOP in certain circumstances, but those circumstances vary greatly.”
Graham v. Florida, 560 U.S. 48 (2010). “2009) California Cal. Penal Code Ann. §667.7(a)(2) (1999); §1170.”
Brodheim v. Rowland, 783 F. Supp. 1245 (N.D. Cal. 1991). “*1249 Cal.Penal Code § 667.7(a)(1) (emphasis added).”
People v. Gonzalez, 201 Cal. App. 3d 811 (Cal. Ct. App. 1988). “) In fixing sentence in the instant proceeding the trial court found appellant not only had served the two prior prison terms required to render him a habitual criminal subject to life imprisonment (Pen. Code, § 667.7), but also that the appropriate minimum sentence for this,…”
People v. Reynolds, 232 Cal. App. 3d 1528 (Cal. Ct. App. 1991). “The most serious charge was aggravated assault by an habitual offender (Pen. Code, § 667.7). 1 Appellant pled guilty to two counts of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.”
People v. Bailey CA3 (Cal. Ct. App. 2025). “1 Undesignated statutory references are to the Penal Code.”
People v. Holdsworth CA1/3 (Cal. Ct. App. 2025). “He was sentenced as a habitual offender (Pen. Code, § 667.7, subd. (a))1 with two prior serious felony conviction enhancements (§ 667, subd.”
Cal. Penal Code § 667.7(a)(1): 2 cases
State v. Reynolds, 535 P.3d 427 (Wash. 2023). “CAL. PENAL CODE § 667.7(a)(1). In other words, these states all require LWOP in certain circumstances, but those circumstances vary greatly.”
Brodheim v. Rowland, 783 F. Supp. 1245 (N.D. Cal. 1991). “*1249 Cal.Penal Code § 667.7(a)(1) (emphasis added).”
Cal. Penal Code § 667.7(a)(2): 2 cases
State v. Moretti, 446 P.3d 609 (Wash. 2019). “Although there was previously a suggestion that he may have a mild intellectual disability, his most recent forensic mental health evaluation reported that he seemed to be pretending to be unable to remember details about the charges against him and found that this was "not a…”
Graham v. Florida, 560 U.S. 48 (2010). “2009) California Cal. Penal Code Ann. §667.7(a)(2) (1999); §1170.”
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