Tracks five public policy issues, including reinstating the death penalty and opposition to the Racial Justice Act.
LOS ANGELES— Today, the ACLU of Southern California released a new report outlining five public policy issues L.A. County advocates and community members have tracked during District Attorney Nathan Hochman’s first year in office.
The five sections of the report cover D.A. Hochman’s decisions to:
- reinstate the death penalty in Los Angeles
- oppose the Racial Justice Act at the California Supreme Court
- revert to extreme charging practices, including reviving sentencing enhancements
- support Prop 36, despite Prop 36 driving up the L.A. County jail population during one of the deadliest years on record for L.A. County’s jails, and
- undermine adoption of care-centered community safety solutions.
“Angelenos deserve a district attorney who protects communities through policies rooted in safety, equity, and care,” said Jess Farris, senior policy counsel at the ACLU of Southern California. “While D.A. Hochman has taken a few commendable steps during his first year in office, such as permitting exonerations to move forward, these actions stand out as exceptions. Overall, his record reflects a hardline approach to prosecution and reveals a pattern of extreme and debunked approaches to crime, many that will increase mass incarceration.”
Each section ends with a recommendation for D.A. Hochman, which include ending L.A. County’s experiment with the death penalty, protecting the Racial Justice Act instead of fighting it, and ending the use of extreme charging practices.
Read the report: https://www.aclusocal.org/en/publications/los-angeles-deserves-better-reviewing-los-angeles-district-attorney-hochman-first-year-office