Over the past year, the city of Los Angeles has seen a sharp increase in homicides, thanks in part to a surge in gang violence. Naturally, district attorney George Gascon has decided that the best way to handle the issue is to downsize the city’s gang unit.
The city’s “Hardcore Gangs” unit is being shrunk, according to sources in the unit. It is also being renamed, with sources saying that Gascon’s administration “doesn’t like it” its current title. This would be in keeping with Gascon’s philosophy of elevating social justice over actual justice, even when it comes to gang crimes.
Los Angeles saw 349 homicides in 2020, which is nearly 100 more than in 2019. The rise has continued through 2021: Through February, the city has seen a 39% increase in homicides compared to the same period last year. Gangs are responsible for part of the increase, with LAPD Chief Michel Moore saying in November, “We’re seeing gang involvement, we’re seeing street gangs in street violence, many times over.” The Hardcore Gangs unit is working approximately 700 active cases.
Gascon has already shown himself to be soft on gang crime. He has issued a blanket ban on sentencing enhancements, including the gang enhancement that would have applied to an alleged MS-13 gang member who killed a transgender woman in the city last week. He also refused to prosecute a 17-year-old member of the Main Street Mafia Crips as an adult after he and three other gang members, unprovoked, shot a stranded motorist 36 times.
Gascon has rejected all nuance and case-by-case analysis, instead pursuing blanket bans on sentencing enhancements and on trying juveniles as adults. He is not seeking justice for Los Angeles residents experiencing a surge in violent crime. Instead, he spends his time bragging about how many fewer years repeat criminals are going to serve in prison without sentencing enhancements.
Gascon’s progressive worldview leaves him unfit to oversee the pursuit of justice. His priority is not the victims of crime or the safety of the county’s residents but with using the district attorney’s office to impose a soft-on-crime progressive ideology. He is committed to that goal, even if that means shrugging off homicides and gang shootings when the city is seeing a surge of them.
