Facing rising crime in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Chicago, grassroots movements have sprung up to recall the liberal prosecutors tasked with protecting these cities.
Residents of San Francisco have authorized a recall election in an attempt to remove District Attorney Chesa Boudin, son of convicted Weather Underground terrorists David Gilbert and Kathy Boudin. Since taking office in 2020, Boudin has largely sought to eliminate cash bail, offered more lenient sentences to criminals, and helped unleash a wave of robberies and car break-ins. This has led to a 150% increase in thefts in certain districts. Additionally, more than 50 attorneys have either been fired or resigned from their positions due to sharp disagreements with Boudin’s refusal to prosecute crime.
Further down the coast, the Democratic district attorney of Los Angeles, George Gascon, is operating in a manner similar to Boudin. Gascon’s tenure as the top prosecutor in Los Angeles has enabled a sharp rise in violent crime throughout LA, which has begun to creep into LA’s wealthier districts. Last year, Gascon’s office rolled out a controversial new policy that enabled juvenile offenders to avoid jail time for a large number of egregious offenses, including robbery, arson, assault, and burglary. In response, over 97% of the prosecutors working under Gascon voted to authorize a recall election of their boss later this year. Gascon’s opponents now must collect roughly 580,000 signatures to authorize a recall election.
In Chicago, Democratic District Attorney for Cook County Kim Foxx faces growing backlash for giving what many voters perceived to be preferential treatment to convicted felon Jussie Smollett. While many in Chicago believed Smollett deserved to face criminal prosecution for making up a racist assault on his person, Foxx dropped Smollett’s criminal charges. Foxx’s decision would later be overturned by a judge, and Foxx was replaced with a special prosecutor, who would go on to convict Smollett of his crimes in December of 2021. Earlier this month, a bill was filed in the Illinois State Assembly to authorize a recall against Foxx for her actions “creating a crisis of confidence in the Cook County judicial system.”
While recalls against Gascon and Foxx still need to gain enough grassroots support to become official, they are indicative of a larger pattern of growing discontent. Voters lament the acceptance of crime by partisan district attorneys who refuse to do their jobs. Boudin is almost certain to be recalled, as growing numbers of San Francisco residents continue to fall victim to drug-induced lawlessness.
Either way, prosecutors across the United States should take note that some of the most liberal cities in America are taking action.
