Countywide : Man With Violent History Sentenced Under ‘3 Strikes’

A man with a long criminal history, including slashing his girlfriend’s throat with a straight razor, is the second defendant in Orange County to be sentenced to 25 years to life in prison under the new “three strikes” law, officials said Tuesday.

Robert Eric Parrish, 36, was sentenced Friday by Orange County Superior Court Judge Anthony Rackauckas. The judge also sentenced him to an additional term of 16 years to life in prison for the slashing attack.

Parrish’s criminal history dates back to 1989, when he was convicted of burglarizing a home in Orange County. He has an additional conviction for assault with a deadly weapon for stabbing a man in San Bernardino County.

His 18-year-old girlfriend required 20 stitches after she was attacked Jan. 15 in Anaheim. Parrish fled after the attack but was arrested in April when he tried to get a cash refund for goods he had stolen from a Buena Park department store. He was charged with burglary in that crime.

Because the “three strikes” law was not signed into law until March, Parrish could not be sentenced under it for the attack on his girlfriend. But prosecutors sought the toughest punishment against him for the burglary.

Rackauckas sentenced Parrish to a 16-year prison term for the assault and a 25-year-to-life term for the burglary.