It was revealed last week that Gascón hired Tiffiny Blacknell, a controversial public defender who has a history of expressing anti-police beliefs.
"I've confirmed D.A. George Gascon has hired public defender Tiffiny Blacknell to his administration as a Grade 4 prosecutor," KTTV-TV investigative reporter Bill Melugin wrote on Twitter. "Blacknell served on Gascon's policy committee during his campaign. She has called LAPD "barbarians" and says "prisons should be abolished."
Melugin included a photo of Blacknell wearing a t-shirt that read: "THE POLICE ARE TRAINED TO KILL US." He also included screenshots of Blacknell calling LAPD officers "barbarians," and another of her tweets that declares, "Prison is obsolete. We need to reimagine America without it."
Blacknell was criticized in 2020 after she allegedly helped negotiate a "sweetheart deal" with a suspected gang murderer. Blacknell reportedly went behind the backs of the victim's family and the prosecutor. The deal was ultimately withdrawn.
Cindy Wallace, who has been a prosecutor in the DA's office for almost 13 years, told KTTV, "It's really unfortunate. I think it's unfair. It seems like she was given some sort of preferential treatment for helping George Gascón's election, being on the transition team, it's nepotistic a bit."
Eric Siddall, the vice president of the union representing prosecutors in the L.A. County DA's Office, said she doesn't have enough experience. "This is really about political cronyism rather than someone who actually meets the qualification standards of a Grade 4 position," Siddall alleged.
As a Grade 4 prosecutor, Blacknell will purportedly be making up to $15,000 per month. The reported Twitter account of Blackwell has since gone private and her tweets are protected.
Gascón, whose campaign received over $2 million from leftist billionaire George Soros, is dealing with his own problems — he is facing a recall effort.
On Saturday, organizers held a "victims vigil" outside Gascón's office in downtown Los Angeles. Organizers expected 100 people to attend the rally, where they planned to get 20 signatures from Los Angeles County residents, which is the necessary amount needed to file an intent to recall.
"The recall effort needs valid signatures from at least 10 percent of registered voters in the county, or just under 600,000 people, to qualify for the ballot, according to the L.A. County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk office," NBC News reported. "Elected officials must be in office for at least 90 days before a recall effort can be officially launched. Gascón was sworn in on Dec. 7."
The day he took office in December, Gascón announced sweeping criminal reform policy changes, including "an end to cash bail, a ban on prosecutors seeking enhanced prison sentences, and showing leniency to many low-level offenders," according to the Los Angeles Times.
The Recall George Gascón website states:
He promised a softer and gentler criminal justice system that would reduce incarceration rates for minor offenders and place increased focus on mental health and addiction issues that plague our communities. But the moment he was sworn in as District Attorney, George Gascon instituted a series of directives to the prosecutors in his command that have nothing to do with a progressive approach to prosecution and have everything to do with a radical agenda that ignores victims, disregards the law and endangers the lives and livelihoods of all Angelenos.
The recall effort against Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom already has the necessary signatures ahead of the March 17 deadline.
Former Acting Director of National Intelligence Richard Grenell teased during his CPAC speech that he may run for governor of California if Newsom is recalled.
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