But at his August 1995 sentencing, Judge Pierce noted that Moreno had been paroled for less than a year when he was discovered with the cocaine. He stands before the court using an alias. All his priors have been under different names. This is not a man seeking rehabilitation. Many judges say the biggest question in their minds is whether defendants are likely to commit further crimes.
Judges say they look for good risks, and then they gamble.
Sometimes the judges guess correctly and sometimes they don't. Long Beach Superior Court Judge Bradford Andrews says he's had both types of cases. Once, he says, he took a chance on a man charged with stealing aluminum cans out of recycling bins. The defendant had a series of robberies on his record from when he was a teenager, but Andrews decided to strike the man's priors and grant him probation. Nine months later, the can collector was back in court on a similar theft charge.