LOS ANGELES (KNX) — Upon entering office in 2020, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón immediately banned prosecutors from seeking the death penalty or life sentences without parole, and restricting the trying of juveniles as adults.
On Friday, the county’s top prosecutor changed tack. Gascón announced in two staff memoranda that the office would allow for the formation of committees to evaluate “extraordinary” cases where a defendant’s alleged conduct may merit harsher penalties than what was typically allowed under new policies.
The D.A. noted that there “may be the rare occasion” where special circumstance allegations may be “necessary” — potentially resulting in a life term in prison without parole in some murder cases, and transfer of juvenile defendants to adult court in the “most egregious cases that warrant a state prison commitment.”
The “Alternative Charging Evaluation Committee” will review cases where the handling prosecutors, head deputy, and bureau director are all in agreement that special circumstance allegations may be necessary.
Approval to file special circumstance allegations will “only be granted in extraordinary situations where it is abundantly clear that the defendant is beyond any means of rehabilitation and the crime perpetrated is deserving of extreme penalty,” Gascón wrote.
“In exceptional circumstances, criminal jurisdiction may be appropriate for youth offenders,” Gascón added, “where it is abundantly clear the minor poses a danger to the public and has serious difficulty controlling their dangerous behavior in line with the evaluation for extended Secure Youth Treatment Facility detention.”
Another committee, the Juvenile Alternative Charging Committee, will review cases when the handling prosecutor, deputy-in-charge, assistant head deputy, and head deputy of the Juvenile Division file a recommendation to transfer to adult court.
Gascón doubled down on opposition to the death penalty, however. In one memo, he wrote that his office was “committed ot never seeking the death penalty, eliminating mass incarceration, and fostering rehabilitation for those charged with crimes.”
The change in policy came as Gascón has weathered significant criticism from law enforcement leaders in L.A. County, including Sheriff Alex Villanueva and former L.A. police Chief Charlie Beck, as well as some prosecutors in his own office.
The union representing more than 800 deputy district attorneys in L.A. County filed a lawsuit in 2020 challenging some of Gascóns reformist policies, including one requiring that prosecutors seek dismissal of special circumstance allegations in pending homicide cases.
A judge ruled in favor of the Association of Deputy District Attorneys for L.A. County last year. But the case has been placed on hold while Gascón prepares an appeal, with a trial date scheduled for April 2021.
Gascón is facing a second recall effort initiated in December.
"The district attorney is firmly committed to his principles. One of these underlying principles is to constantly refine what we are doing so that we can continue to enhance public safety in a thoughtful manner," Alex Bastian, an advisor to Gascón, said in a statement following the release of the memos. "This is what the D.A. has always done, and what he will continue to do. We are now more than a year into his term, he has listened to community members, victims and colleagues. Based on everything we have learned we are rolling out these policy adjustments."
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