Californians’ crime concerns are putting pressure on criminal justice reform and progressive prosecutors

A decade after the passage of Proposition 47, Bean’s grievances are increasingly shared by Californians, with shoplifting thefts captured on videos that go viral and create a sense that the state has become lawless. And voters are increasingly blaming criminal justice reform efforts, Proposition 47 and progressive district attorneys.

The issue has led to some tough races this year for Democratic and progressive congressmen, mayors and district attorneys up for reelection in the solidly blue state. And a new statewide ballot measure, Proposition 36, would partially reverse the 2014 law.

Critics say criminal justice reform was a failed social experiment.

Two years after voters in San Francisco ousted one of the first reform-minded district attorneys, voters across the bay in Oakland will decide in November whether to recall another progressive district attorney.

In South Los Angeles, District Attorney George Gascón, co-author of Proposition 47 and winner of the 2020 election following protests and racist clashes following the police killing of George Floyd, faces stiff competition from a former federal prosecutor who describes himself as “tough.” denotes “center” candidate.

“Mr. Gascón has been one of the greatest gifts to gangs,” Nathan Hochman said at their recent debate, criticizing him for not seeking to improve gang sentencing in the highly publicized killing of “General Hospital” actor Johnny Wactor have.

Gascón defends his record, saying the use of gang enhancements has historically been linked to racial bias and that a special committee decides on a case-by-case basis. His office says it has prosecuted more than 100,000 “serious crimes” in the past four years, a rate comparable to the previous decade.

Gascón has also come under fire for his office’s policy of not trying juveniles as adults, with critics pointing to cases of recidivism.

They include a man who was involved in a gas station robbery in 2018 when he was 16 and was later released from a juvenile detention center, only to be arrested and charged with murder in April this year. Another, a 17-year-old gang member from 2019 who admitted to a double murder and faced life in prison, was released last February and arrested months later in connection with a new murder.

Hochman, a former Republican running as an independent, has raised nearly $4 million for his campaign, compared to $678,000 for Gascón.

Frustration over retail theft has led Gov. Gavin Newsom to push for a series of bills that target serial offenders and car thieves but shy away from making retail crimes a felony again.

Proposition 36 goes further: It would make theft of any amount a felony if a person has been convicted of theft twice, extend some sentences for theft and drug offenses, make possession of fentanyl a felony and require people with multiple drug offenses to do so , complete treatment or serve a sentence.

Voters rejected a similar initiative in 2020, but this time there is a bipartisan coalition supporting Proposition 36. More than 180 Democratic elected officials, including 64 mayors, joined a campaign last month in support of the initiative.

The measure also has support from the California Chamber of Commerce and major retailers such as Walmart, Target and Home Depot. A recent poll from the Public Policy Institute of California found that 71% of likely voters said they would vote “yes.”

“It’s difficult for businesses and communities that are really on the front lines,” said Jennifer Barrera, president of the California Chamber of Commerce. “I think it will probably increase incarceration … but I also hope and expect that it will certainly have an impact on reducing crime.”