Incoming Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón Promises Criminal Justice Reform

Nearly 20 years ago George Gascón was the assistant chief of the Los Angeles Police Department. This month he was elected as the city’s new district attorney overcoming fierce opposition from law enforcement groups. Gascón, the former district attorney and police chief of San Francisco, campaigned on a platform of criminal justice reform, including a promise to stop prosecuting children as adults, not seeking the death penalty and possibly reopening investigations into fatal shootings by police officers. We’ll talk to Gascón about his ideas for reform and his close election, defeating LA’s first Black district attorney partly by galvanizing the support of Black Lives Matter activists.