Democratic voters push out lenient prosecutors

It appears that voters, even in Democratic strongholds, have had enough of the soft-on-crime policies implemented by left-wing prosecutors in recent years. In California and Illinois, three district attorneys who had enacted lenient sentencing policies were fired in Tuesday’s election. Additionally, a ballot measure to increase penalties in California passed overwhelmingly.

In Los Angeles County, where Vice President Kamala Harris won by nearly 30 points, Democratic District Attorney George Gascón lost by 22 points to Nathan Hochman, an independent. Gascón, who was elected with the support of George Soros after the killing of George Floyd in 2020, became known for eliminating cash bail and refusing to charge underage violent offenders as adults.

Gascón also co-authored Proposition 47, an initiative passed in 2014 that “downgraded most thefts from felonies to misdemeanors when the amount stolen was less than $950, and reclassified some serious drug offenses as misdemeanors.”

Under Gascón, the shoplifting rate in Los Angeles rose 81% in 2023, with an overall increase of 28% over the past five years. Violent crime also increased during Gascón’s time in office.

“LA County voters rejected extreme pro-crime policies,” Hochman noted in an interview Thursday. “Gascón said that certain crimes and certain criminals are not prosecuted regardless of the facts and the law. I rejected this layoff policy. I also rejected the policy of mass incarceration and ended up in the middle of “hard work.” You have to make sure that each individual case is viewed individually.”

Additionally, California voters in the Bay Area were angered by another low-crime official, Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price, who was removed as part of a recall effort by an overwhelming 70% of voters. Price drew intense criticism for loosening sentencing standards, including lowering charges for defendants charged with killing a 2-year-old boy and allowing a future murderer to avoid a lengthy prison sentence for a previous crime.

A statewide ballot initiative in the Golden State that increased criminal penalties was also a major success, with over 70% of Californians voting to pass the measure. Under Proposition 36, criminal charges for possession of fentanyl and theft under $950 are permitted if the offender has two prior convictions. Changes are also being made that will increase criminal penalties. The measure passed overwhelmingly despite strong opposition from Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom.

Meanwhile, in Chicago, Democrat Eileen O’Neill Burke, who promised to keep criminals accused of gun crimes behind bars and “prosecute retail thefts of $300 or more as felonies,” won 66% of the vote [in a race for Cook County, Illinois, state’s attorney].

In comments to The Washington Stand, Family Research Council senior fellow Joseph Backholm argued that the progressive vision of leniency in crimes ultimately does not appeal to most voters’ sense of justice.

“Because progressivism denies the doctrine of sin, they assume that the only reason people do bad things is because something bad was done to them,” he noted. “So if people are simply treated well, they will be nice to others. This belief has inspired many people to protect the innocent by punishing criminals, to victimize the innocent by refusing to punish criminals. Voters care more about safety than whether the person breaking into the building was abused as a child, and they want leaders who share the same values. Christians believe in redemption, so there is hope for all, but justice and decency require that we put the interests of the innocent above the interests of the guilty.”

Originally published by The Washington Stand