{"id":895,"date":"2020-12-21T16:00:29","date_gmt":"2020-12-22T00:00:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nlg.org\/los-angeles\/?p=895"},"modified":"2020-12-28T11:51:54","modified_gmt":"2020-12-28T19:51:54","slug":"nlg-la-movement-partners-support-district-attorney-gascons-justice-reforms","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nlg.org\/los-angeles\/2020\/12\/21\/nlg-la-movement-partners-support-district-attorney-gascons-justice-reforms\/","title":{"rendered":"NLG-LA & MOVEMENT PARTNERS SUPPORT DISTRICT ATTORNEY GASCON’S JUSTICE REFORMS"},"content":{"rendered":"

Civil Rights Attorneys, Public Defenders, Social Justice Organizers, Religious Leaders, Movement Partners, Crime Survivors, and Directly Impacted Communities Strongly Support Mr. Gasc\u00f3n’s New Policy Directives<\/h3>\n
On November 3, 2020, Los Angeles voters elected George Gasc\u00f3n as the new District Attorney (DA) by a clear majority and, in doing so, delivered a powerful mandate to shift from the decades long tough on crime approach that has made Los Angeles the capital of human caging in this state and home to the largest jail system in this country, while failing to address any of the underlying issues that most significantly impact public safety.<\/p>\n

Voters have recognized that prosecutorial discretion is a tremendous source of power in our criminal legal system that can be dangerously wielded to criminalize poverty, flood prisons and jails, deepen systemic racial disparities, exempt police killings from accountability, justify bloated policing budgets, and prosecute youth like \u201csuper predators.\u201d It is the potential for this power to be used to help decriminalize public health issues, make diversion the default, restrain the excesses and violence of law enforcement, end mass incarceration, and ultimately produce safer and healthier communities, that has ushered in a wave of progressive prosecutors around the country.<\/p>\n

On his first day in office, Mr. Gasc\u00f3n enacted the policies that were at the center of his widely publicized campaign: The elimination of sentencing enhancements, youth no longer sent to adult criminal court, cash bail drastically scaled back, non-prosecution of low-level misdemeanors, expanded opportunities for parole and resentencing, and the reopening of some cases of police killings. These sweeping reforms will enhance public safety and are well-aligned with a burgeoning national consciousness that we can no longer police and cage away the many social ills produced by inequality, racism, and poverty: the root causes of crime.<\/p>\n

We commend DA Gasc\u00f3n for his deep and ongoing collaboration with progressive thinkers, activists, leaders, and organizations, as well as crime survivors and community members who are seeking meaningful societal transformation as opposed to solely punitive measures. The open resistance and brazen hostility displayed by some judges, commissioners, and even certain factions of the DA\u2019s staff who oppose Mr. Gasc\u00f3n\u2019s new directives, only serves to underscore the transformational impact of these directives. The pushback to a progressive approach to crime and safety comes as no surprise, especially as we see the same decades old dog whistle of \u201cLaw and Order\u201d being used to undermine a less punitive and more productive approach to public safety.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

But, now more than ever, we must protect the reimagined vision for public safety in Los Angeles.\u00a0Mr. Gasc\u00f3n\u2019s election represents the will of the people, and WE THE UNDERSIGNED strongly support his directives which are a critical first step to unseat Los Angeles as the capital of mass incarceration in California<\/u><\/b>.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\n

Sincerely,<\/p>\n

American Indian Movement SoCal<\/p>\n

ACLU of Northern California<\/p>\n

ACLU of Southern California<\/p>\n

Bend the Arc: Jewish Action, Southern California<\/p>\n

Black Jewish Justice Alliance<\/p>\n

Black Lives Matter \u2013 Los Angeles<\/p>\n

Black Lives Matter \u2013 Long Beach<\/p>\n

California Coalition for Women Prisoners<\/p>\n

California Conference for Equality and Justice<\/p>\n

Californians for Safety and Justice<\/p>\n

California Public Defender\u2019s Association<\/p>\n

Crime Survivors for Safety and Justice<\/p>\n

Center for Juvenile Law and Policy, Loyola Law School<\/p>\n

Centro CSO<\/p>\n

Children\u2019s Defense Fund\u2013California<\/p>\n

Coalition for Engaged Education<\/p>\n

Color of Change<\/p>\n

Court Watch Los Angeles<\/p>\n

Creating JusticeLA<\/p>\n

Dignity and Power Now<\/p>\n

District Attorney Accountability Coalition<\/p>\n

Essie Justice Group<\/p>\n

Frontline Wellness Network<\/p>\n

Gender Justice LA<\/p>\n

Ground Game LA<\/p>\n

Immigrant Defenders Law Center<\/p>\n

Immigrant Legal Resource Center<\/p>\n

Interfaith Communities United for Justice and Peace<\/p>\n

JusticeLA<\/p>\n

Jewish Voice for Peace \u2013 L.A.<\/p>\n

LA County Public Defenders Union<\/p>\n

La Defensa<\/p>\n

LA Voice<\/p>\n

M.A.R.I.A (Mothers Against Racism in America)<\/p>\n

Me Too Survivors’ March International<\/p>\n

National Lawyers Guild \u2013 Los Angeles<\/p>\n

New Earth<\/p>\n

Occupy ICE LA<\/p>\n

Reform LA Jails<\/p>\n

Re: Store Justice<\/p>\n

SEIU Local 2015<\/p>\n

Smart Justice California<\/p>\n

Stonewall Democratic Club<\/p>\n

The Arts for Healing and Justice Network<\/p>\n

The Church Without Walls \u2013 Skid Row<\/p>\n

The Future Left<\/p>\n

The Los Angeles Regional Reentry Partnership<\/p>\n

UCLA Cops off Campus Coalition<\/p>\n

UCLA Labor Center<\/p>\n

Urban Peace Institute<\/p>\n

White People 4 Black Lives<\/p>\n

Unified Statement in Support of Justice Reforms<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Civil Rights Attorneys, Public Defenders, Social Justice Organizers, Religious Leaders, Movement Partners, Crime Survivors, and Directly Impacted Communities Strongly Support Mr. Gasc\u00f3n’s New Policy Directives On November 3, 2020, Los Angeles voters elected George Gasc\u00f3n as the new District Attorney (DA) by a clear majority and, in doing so, delivered a powerful mandate to shift […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":19500,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","footnotes":"","_members_access_role":[],"_members_access_error":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-895","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t