Another Los Angeles community has expressed its lack of confidence in County District Attorney George Gascón.
With a 3-2 vote, La Verne’s city council condemned Gascon’s policies Monday, calling them a threat to public safety and security. La Verne becomes the 24th city in Los Angeles County to express this sentiment about the district attorney.
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Last week, the city council in San Dimas also voted “no confidence,” joining others in the county, including Norwalk, Beverly Hills, Whittier, Torrance, Manhattan Beach, Covina, La Habra Heights and Santa Clarita.
Critics like San Dimas Mayor Emmett Badar and La Verne mayor Tim Hepburn say Gascón's policies give criminals more rights than victims. For example, Gascón, who began serving in December, moved his department to eliminate cash bail for nonviolent offenses or misdemeanors. He’s also directed prosecutors not to pursue the death penalty and has eliminated specific sentencing enhancements.
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“How does a vote of no confidence get us where we wanna be?” La Verne Councilmember Wendy Lau asked during Monday’s meeting. “This would not move us forward.”
Although two dozen cities have voted “no confidence” in the district attorney and his policies, they are entirely symbolic. Therefore, Gascón is not obligated to acknowledge or address any of the cities’ votes.
The district attorney is, however, facing a growing recall. To have Gascón recalled, campaign organizers need to collect nearly 580,000 verifiable signatures from county voters.
“George Gascón's failure to protect our most vulnerable communities is a complete dereliction of his foremost duty,” Tania Owen, co-chair of the Recall George Gascón campaign, has said. “He must be removed from office immediately before he can do any more damage.”
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