THE FIRES ARE AFFECTING
PEOPLE NOWHERE NEAR THE FLAMES.
IT'S PRETTY NASTY.
NOT GOOD FOR YOU.
WE TRY AND STAY INSIDE.
A SMOKY HAZE HANGS IN THE
AIR FROM THE SAN FRANCISCO BAY
TO RENO, NEVADA.
ONE OF THE MORE SURPRISING
RESULTS OF TUESDAY'S ELECTION
WAS THE RACE FOR BROWARD COUNTY
STATE ATTORNEY WHERE HAROLD
PRYOR WON THE DEMOCRATIC
NOMINATION, AND WILL ALMOST
CERTAINLY BE THE WINNER IN
NOVEMBER.
HE BEAT OUT A CROWDED FIELD
AGAINST CANDIDATES WHO HAD MORE
MONEY AND GREATER NAME
RECOGNITION.
THIS SUNDAY FACING, EXPLAINED
HOW GROWING UP IN A ROUGH
NEIGHBORHOOD SHAPED HIS RUN FOR
OFFICE.
GROWING UP IN THAT TYPE OF
ENVIRONMENT I CAN TELL YOU FROM
MY LIFE EXPERIENCE, YOU EITHER
SUCCUMB TO THE PRESSURES THAT
ARE AROUND YOU, RIGHT?
OR YOU DECIDE THAT YOU'RE GOING
TO DO SOMETHING TO CHANGE IT.
FROM THE AGE OF 14 ALL THE WAY
UP UNTIL TWO YEARS AGO, I'VE
LOST FRIENDS AND FAMILY MEMBERS
TO GUN VIOLENCE.
I LOST A COUSIN, A FIRST COUSIN
OF MINE TO GUN VIOLENCE, HE WAS
BRUTALLY MURDERED AND ANOTHER
ONE OF MY COUSINS WHO WAS WITH
HIM, HE WAS SHOT, HE WAS IN A
COMA FOR A FEW DAYS AND HE CAME
OUT AND RECOVERED AFTER A FEW
MONTHS LATER.
AND SO, GUN VIOLENCE HAS
DECIMATED SO MANY COMMUNITIES
HERE IN THE STATE OF FLORIDA
BUT ALSO IN THE COUNTRY.
AND ALSO GIVEN THE MARJORY
STONEMAN MASSACRE, I UNDERSTAND
AND I KNOW WHAT IT FEELS LIKE
TO GO TO A PERSONAL OR CLOSE
FRIENDS FUNERAL, AND ALL DUE TO
THE EVILS OF GUN VIOLENCE.
SO THAT'S HAD A PROFOUND EFFECT
ON ME.
IT'S HAD AN EFFECT ON ME AND
WANTING TO GO TO LAW SCHOOL.
I WENT TO LAW SCHOOL NOT TO
MAKE MONEY OR BE A HIGH-POWERED
ATTORNEY.
I ACTUALLY WANTED TO MAKE A
CHANGE.
SO THAT IS WHY I BECAME A
PROSECUTOR.
I LEARNED VERY EARLY ON FROM AN
EARLY AGE ALL THE WAY TO LAW
SCHOOL THAT PROSECUTORS, STATE
ATTORNEYS HAVE AN INCREDIBLE
POWER, THEY HAVE THE POWER TO
DECIDE SOMETIMES LIFE AND
DEATH, THEY HAVE THE POWER TO
DETERMINE IF SOMEONE CAN HAVE A
SECOND OR THIRD CHANCE.
THEY HAVE THE POWER TO
DETERMINE IF WE ARE GOING TO
GIVE CHILDREN A SECOND CHANCE.
THEY HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO
ERADICATE THE SCHOOL TO PRISON
PIPELINE.
SO MY LIFE EXPERIENCES HAVE
BEEN IMPORTANT TO ME ALL THE
WAY UP INTO THIS POINT.
AND I THINK IT'S AWESOME AND
GREAT THAT WE CAN HAVE STATE
ATTORNEYS THAT HAVE THAT
PERSPECTIVE, THAT HAVE THAT
REAL-LIFE PERSPECTIVE, THAT CAN
BRING IT TO THE COURTROOM AND
THE STATE ATTORNEY'S OFFICE AND
IMPART THAT INFORMATION UPON
THE SUBORDINATES TO ENSURE THAT
WE ARE INITIATING THIS GROUND-
LEVEL CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM
THAT WE ARE TALKING ABOUT BUT
ALSO DOING THAT WITHOUT
COMPROMISING THE SAFETY OF OUR
COMMUNITY.
WHAT WAS THE IMPETUS, WHAT
MADE YOU DECIDE TO GET INTO
THIS RACE?
IT WAS A COMBINATION OF A
LOT OF THINGS, A COMBINATION OF
MY LIFE EXPERIENCES, WHAT I
TALKED ABOUT EARLIER BUT ALSO,
THE EVENTS OF TREY VON MARTIN,
THE ISSUE OF POLICE BRUTALITY
THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY.
THE MASS INCARCERATION ISSUE
THAT WE'VE SEEN IN THIS COUNTRY
AND NOT JUST MASS INCARCERATION
ISSUE BUT THE DISPARITIES BASED
ON RACE.
THAT HAD A PROFOUND EFFECT ON
ME AND I, YOU KNOW, I LOOKS AT
THE WORLD AROUND ME, I LOOKED
AT MYSELF AND SAW THAT I HAD A
PARTICULAR SKILL SET AND TALENT
TO GIVE AND I FELT THAT I
COULDN'T WASTE IT AT A TIME
LIKE THIS.
I WAS COMPELLED TO GET
INVOLVED, I WAS COMPELLED TO
THROW MY HAT IN THE RING
BECAUSE EVERYONE IS TALKING
ABOUT CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM
BUT NOT MANY HAVE ACTUALLY
EXPERIENCED IT AND NOT MANY CAN
DO IT RESPONSIBLY LIKE I CAN
AND ACTUALLY UNDERSTAND OUR
COMMUNITIES AND HOW WE NEED TO
INITIATE THAT.
WHEN I SAID THAT THE STATE
ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, I WORKED
HARD TO ENSURE THAT I UTILIZED
MY DISCRETION AND MY COMMON
SENSE.
I UTILIZED SOUND REASON AND
ANALYTICAL SKILLS TO ENSURE
THAT WE HAVE THE RIGHT OUTCOME
IN A PARTICULAR CASE.
I WENT TO SLEEP EVERY NIGHT
UNCOMFORTABLY, KNOWING THAT
EVERY DAY I DID THE RIGHT WAY
AND THAT JUSTICE WAS SOUGHT IN
EVERY OUTCOME.
I OFTEN SAY AND I ALWAYS SAID
THEN AS A PROSECUTOR, IT WASN'T
ABOUT WINS OR LOSSES WHEN I
TOOK A CASE TO TRIAL IT WAS
EITHER GUILTY OR NOT GUILTY AND
SOMETIMES JUSTICES ARE NOT
GUILTY VERDICTS, SOMETIMES
JUSTICE IS A GUILTY VERDICT,
SOMETIMES JUSTICE IS DROPPING
THE CASE BECAUSE THE FACTS ARE
NOT THERE.
THERE ARE SOME PEOPLE WHO
WILL HEAR WHAT YOU'RE SAYING
AND THINK TO THEMSELVES, THAT'S
NOT WHAT I WANT IN A STATE
ATTORNEY, I WON A STATE
ATTORNEYS LOOKING FOR BLOOD
EVERY DAY.
I WANT TO STATE ATTORNEY WHO'S
GOING TO GO IN THERE AND FIGHT
THE BAD GUYS IN A WAY THAT WILL
DO, THAT WILL PROTECT US, OR
YOU MORE ABOUT THE VICTIMS THAN
WORRYING ABOUT THE RIGHTS OF
THE CRIMINALS.
I THINK THAT'S A COMMON
MISCONCEPTION.
LOOK, I SAY THIS ALL THE TIME.
IT DOESN'T MATTER WHERE YOU
GREW UP, DOESN'T MATTER YOUR
WALK OF LIFE, RACE, GENDER,
CREED, WE ALL WANT SAFE
COMMUNITIES.
LET'S BE CLEAR.
IT DOESN'T MATTER IF YOU LIVE
AT LIGHTHOUSE POINT OR FORT
LAUDERDALE, POMPANO EACH, WHAT
HAVE YOU, WE ALL WANT SAFER
COMMUNITIES.
AND SO AS THE NEXT STATE
ATTORNEY, I ACKNOWLEDGE THAT WE
HAVE A SYSTEM THAT HAS BEEN
TRADITIONALLY STACKED AGAINST
PEOPLE OF COLOR AND POOR
PEOPLE, BUT ALSO, WE HAVE TO
HAVE A CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM
THAT COMPORTS WITH JUSTICE,
FAIRNESS AND EQUALITY.