Is a defendant's age a mitigating factor in determining his sentence under the Three Strikes law?

Citing People v. Bishop (1997) 56 Cal.App.4th 1245, Herrera nonetheless argues that his sentence should be mitigated because his 1979 strike conviction is remote. As the People point out, however, there is "nothing mitigating" about the remoteness of a prior strike conviction where, as here, a defendant continues to commit crimes in the period between his prior strike and the current offense. (People v. Humphrey (1997) 58 Cal.App.4th 809, 813.)

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Herrera places great emphasis on his age, but age alone is not a mitigating factor. "Otherwise, those criminals with the longest criminal records over the longest period of time would have a built-in argument that the very factor that takes them within the spirit of the Three Strikes lawa lengthy criminal careerhas the inevitable consequencemiddle agethat takes them outside the law's spirit." (People v. Strong (2001) 87 Cal.App.4th 328, 345.)