OXNARD : Parolee Gets 2 1/3 Years for Drug Charge
An Oxnard parolee was sentenced Tuesday to 2 1/3 years in state prison for cultivating marijuana, a crime he pleaded guilty to last month after prosecutors decided not to charge him under the new “three strikes” law.
Preston A. Shelton, 36, was charged with cultivating seven marijuana plants, a felony, only hours after Gov. Pete Wilson signed the new legislation--which mandates sentences of 25 years to life for anyone with prior serious felonies.
Shelton had served more than 10 years in prison for a series of eight robberies in Los Angeles County before being released about nine months ago, his attorney said.
He was arrested on the marijuana charge at his home in the 1200 block of West Fir Street in Oxnard. The 28 months handed down to Shelton by Superior Court Judge Charles R. McGrath was the shortest prison term possible.
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