>> LA's got a new DA and George Gascon is not waiting a long time to put into effect the sort
of agenda he had been campaigning on. On just his first day leading the country's largest
District Attorney's Office, top prosecutor in LA County announced a series of sweeping criminal
justice reforms aimed at permanently changing the course of California's criminal justice system.
Gascon said, I recognize for many this is a new path. Whether you're a protester,
a police officer, or a prosecutor, I ask you to walk with me, ask you to join me on this journey.
We can break the multigenerational cycles of violence, trauma, and arrest and recidivism
that has led America to incarcerate more people than any other nation.
I can't speak necessarily for the protesters or the prosecutors,
but I'm going to guess that many of the police officers or at least the representation
are not gonna be walking with him. But here are a few of the changes,
and then we'll have a little discussion. He tweeted a number of them.
Enhancements, a legacy of the tough-on-crime era, are a principal driver of excessive sentences and
mass incarceration. California enacted over 100 enhancements which are outdated, incoherent,
and applied unfairly. To end mass incarceration in LA, we will cease filing all enhancements.
He talks about the effect that the 3 Strikes Law had on the prison population in California
and says that 3 strikes ends in my office beginning today.
He pledged to reopen four fatal officer-involved shootings, saying, my office will now convene a
Use of Force Review Board to review fatal use of force cases dating back to at least 2012. We must
hold police accountable to restore trust in law enforcement. He says that cash bail is gonna be
ended completely by January 1st, and also says that the death penalty does not make us safer.
It's racist, morally untenable, irreversible, and expensive. And today, it's off the table. So
I would say that's a lot for one day. That's a
busy first day. I don't know how you follow that up on the second day, but
he is hitting a bunch of different areas. These are all things that he campaigned on.
>> Yeah, and one, so it is kind of a
certainly a positive move for progressives, I mean, in terms of reform. And listen,
this is another one of those things where you really can't. A friend of mine is in the LAPD and
there's no middle ground. We never ever, ever find any middle ground in our discussions about reform.
And so I don't really have an answer. We just try to maintain a friendship and outside of
talk of criminal reform. But I like data, and I think these stats don't lie. And you also have
this software data, which is what this generational cycle that you do have to break.
So listen, let's give this guy a shot and see what happens.
I hope there's- >> Yeah.
>> Yeah. >> Yeah, look,
I don't have close relationships with many cops, but I'm seeing the response
to Gascon with the police union. Let's see what's their particular quote. Los Angeles police union
called the reforms disturbing and potentially disastrous, saying Gascon is exploring every
avenue possible to release from jail those responsible for recent rise in violent crime.
And so the thing is, at least with the reforms he's talked about so far.
In terms of direct reform to the day-to-day job of a police officer,
I mean, the closest thing is investigating past fatal officer-involved shootings. The rest of it
is really more about mass incarceration. And the way that people are treated once
they're involved in that system, it's not really about cops can't do this.
They're gonna be reviewed if they do this, strap a body cam onto that. It's not really those sorts of
reforms just yet. And so it's interesting that the response is so negative. I understand that
they're worried about a slippery slope. They're worried about what happens next or whatever.
But I do agree it really does feel like this is one of those areas like with gun control, where
literally nothing can be proposed from the point of view of the entrenched interests.
Nothing will be accepted because it's always considered the first step towards
mass roundups of guns or badges, I don't know.
>> Yeah, I mean, listen, why is that growing exponentially? We have to
have a long term policy fix here, guys. So I guess we will see, I don't know,
>> Yeah, we will see. I'm gonna read just one more comment from Gascon. Perhaps an
image of an idea of what's to come, saying, for those of you who at home may be skeptical,
I wanna ask you to take a moment, close your eyes and imagine your ideal safe neighborhood.
I imagine most of you will imagine neighborhood of parks, playgrounds, and manicured lawns
with kids playing and after-school programs flourishing. I don't imagine
most of you are imagining a neighborhood with a police officer on every corner.
We know what safety looks like, but we don't offer it to every community equally.
And by the way, I would definitely advise everyone. There's good write-ups on
LA Times, NBC News, commentaries, and all of that about things he's doing. He's also talking about
making sure that we have the right funding to treat people with mental health difficulties
appropriately rather than just funneling that again into the same already overcrowded system.
He wants to review cases where people were given a really lengthy prison terms and are not considered
to be threats of future criminality or violence or anything like that. People are much older,
non-violent crimes. So there's some specific reforms here, but there's also a philosophical
change to a little bit more understanding of the proper use for long term incarceration.
And not simply like California has for the last 30 years considered a solution to every societal ill.
>> Yeah, it sounds very pragmatic and I don't know if I would even call it progressive.
It just sounds like it's treating very logically issues from a guy who really has studied them.
He sounds expert and- >> Yeah.
>> Wow, what a refreshing thing that is, too,
to hear from someone who is an expert. >> Yeah, we could use that for a bit.