A Lawton man was given a life sentence in Comanche County this week.
Scratch that. He was given two life sentences.
Two consecutive life sentences.
Oh--and let's not forget to tack on an extra 10 days for running a red light.
His crime? Drug possession. Not drug distribution or drug trafficking or dealing near a school or blowing up a meth lab . . . drug possession.
Cody Mayfield, 39, was found guilty of cocaine possession and methamphetamine possession on Wednesday. In general, possession of a Schedule I or Schedule II CDS (Controlled Dangerous Substance) is punishable by 2 to 10 years in prison on the first offense and 4 to 20 years in prison on the second offense. So why would Mayfield get a life sentence for each possession charge?
The judge pointed to his criminal record, which included two prior felony convictions. In 1993, when he was just 18 years old, Mayfield was convicted in Comanche County of one count of larceny from a retailer. He was sentenced to 4 years, with 3 suspended.
The 3 years probation were to be served following the sentence for another, more serious conviction in Tillman County in 1994--two counts of armed robbery. Mayfield was sentenced to 20 years in prison and served from September 1994 until April 2007, according to the Oklahoma Department of Corrections website.
In 2010, he was in trouble again, this time convicted of knowingly concealing stolen property. He was sentenced to 8 years and served from September 2010 until May 2013. He was arrested on the drug charges in October 2013.
Now, because of his prior criminal history, at less than 40 years of age, he is sentenced to two consecutive life terms.
Consecutive life sentences for drug possession? It seems excessively harsh. However, life sentences for drug crimes is nothing new in Oklahoma. In fact, one Oklahoma woman was recently sentenced to life in prison for shoplifting because of her criminal record.
In 2009, Cecilia Cathleen Rodriguez was sentenced to life in prison for stealing two purses with a total retail value of $655 from a Dillard's department store in Oklahoma City. Rodriguez's sentence came after she rejected a plea deal that would have given her 17 years in prison and instead entered a blind plea.
Calling her a "one-person crime wave," Oklahoma County District Judge Ray C. Elliott cited her more than 30 prior convictions when he sentenced her to life behind bars for shoplifting.
