LOS ANGELES – Today, in the wake of the Judicial Council’s decision to rescind the $0 bail order, George Gascón called on District Attorney Jackie Lacey not to seek bail in cases previously covered.
“Crime has gone down in Los Angeles since the Judicial Council set bail at $0 for some low-level and non-violent offenses, a testament to the fact that we can reduce incarceration and crime simultaneously. Our jails, however, have become hotbeds for Covid-19, with more than 5,100 incarcerated individuals under quarantine. If the Los Angeles Superior Court does not extend its $0 bail order, District Attorney Jackie Lacey must not seek bail in these low-level cases.
The Los Angeles District Attorney must curb her longstanding practice of incarcerating low-level offenders simply because they are too poor to afford bail. Our jails are currently at 100% of design capacity, and it is neither in the interest of our safety nor our health that we usher more people into the few places cradling the disease.”
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George Gascón grew up in Los Angeles after his family immigrated from Cuba. An army veteran, Gascón served as a Los Angeles Police Department Officer for 30 years, rising to the rank of Assistant Chief of Operations. In 2006 he became Chief of Police in Mesa, Arizona, where he stood up to the hateful and anti-immigrant policies of then Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio. In 2009, then-San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom appointed Gascón Chief of Police. Newsom turned to Gascón again in 2011 when he tapped him to be District Attorney to fill the seat vacated by an outgoing Kamala Harris who had been elected Attorney General. During his tenure Gascón implemented reforms that are being duplicated across the country while overseeing violent crime and homicides drop to rates not seen in 50 years. After being elected to two terms, Gascón returned to Los Angeles to care for his elderly mother and to be closer to his two daughters and grandchildren in Long Beach. Gascón is married to Fabiola Kramsky, a three-time Emmy Award winning journalist and recipient of the “Premio Nacional de Periodismo,” the highest recognition given to journalists in Mexico.