This last election cycle has surprised a fair amount of people – but not everyone. Incumbent Los Angeles D.A. George Gascón lost his reelection bid to rival Nathan Hochman who led by double digits virtually the entire race. Gascón previously survived multiple recall efforts after his policies didn’t create the changes he expected.
The two major issues that spurred voters’ dissatisfaction are the homelessness issue and increased occurrences of certain crimes, such as the rise of “smash ‘n grab” thefts or mobs of people ransacking a store in minutes and then absconding with hundreds if not thousands – of dollars in merchandise.
Another high-profile issue that arose in recent months is Gascón’s desire to see the Menendez brothers released from prison. Gascón recently asked Governor Gavin Newsom to grant clemency to the convicted murderers. Hochman called the move’s timing “suspicious,” and vowed to carefully go over the case. However, is isn’t certain that he’d stop the process entirely due to the allegations regarding abuse by their father.
Gascón was elected into office in 2020 on a progressive campaign on the heels of the George Floyd murder. He vowed to reform the criminal justice system and create an avenue for police accountability. He enacted a number of policies intended to improve the justice system and change how crime is prosecuted.
Among them was the controversial “Zero Bail Policy” for most misdemeanors and some non-violent felonies. This lead, almost immediately, to a sharp uptick in repeat offenses – with some suspects committing crimes, being arrested, and then released multiple times a day.
With a tough-on-crime republican taking the place of Gascón, we can expect to see some radical changes to the way crime is handled in Los Angeles County. Whether he hits the mark and pleases the people, or swings too far the other direction and sets up another showdown in a few years remains to be seen.
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