LOS ANGELES – Today, Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas endorsed George Gascón to be the next DA of Los Angeles County. In announcing his support, the Supervisor said:
“Los Angeles County can and must be a leader in the national movement to reform the criminal justice system and invest in the health of our communities. I began my career in public service with this mandate, and it still drives my work. That’s why I am enthusiastically endorsing George Gascón for District Attorney. Our values and priorities are aligned when it comes to ending mass incarceration, investing in diversion, re-entry and real mental health solutions, and empowering citizen voices to ensure that everyone is respected by those who who are charged with keeping us safe. George is the leader Los Angeles needs to take us in this direction. The time to make progress is now.”
“It’s past time to move away from the failed policies of the past, and to invest instead in the solutions that we know will make us safer and healthier,” said former District Attorney and Assistant Chief of the LAPD, George Gascón. “Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas is pushing to expand the Office of Diversion and Reentry because he, like me, understands that modern solutions are the only way to secure a brighter and more sustainable future. I’m honored to have his support, and together I know we can reimagine public safety in LA and beyond.”
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George Gascón is the Democratic Party’s nominee. He is endorsed by the LA Times and the LA Daily News, Vice Presidential nominee Kamala Harris, U.S. Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, Governor Gavin Newsom, Mayor Eric Garcetti, Black Lives Matter cofounder Patrisse Cullors, labor leader and civil rights icon Dolores Huerta, and former Chief of the LAPD Charlie Beck. Click here for a full list of his supporters.
Mr. 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.