Written by Justin Culetu
“It is not because men have made laws, that personality, liberty, and property exist. On the contrary, it is because personality, liberty, and property exist beforehand, that men make laws.” – Frédéric Bastiat
In recent years, America’s liberals have drastically increased their calls for progressive criminal justice reform. This movement gained momentum in 2016, with dozens of cities and counties across the country electing progressive district attorneys who sought to enforce massive shifts in the way criminal prosecutions are handled.
Many of these candidates were heavily supported by major Democrat donor George Soros, including California’s own George Gascon, the LA County DA.
The premise of this movement appeals to leftists who believe that America’s criminal justice system was founded on the basis of targeting low-income minorities, and libertarians who believe drug-related crimes should not be subject to punishment. With the help of George Soros and other progressive donors, tough on crime district attorney candidates have struggled to remain competitive.
According to “Fair and Just Prosecution”, a progressive criminal justice advocacy group, the goal of the progressive take over on criminal justice reform is to create “a justice system grounded in fairness, equity, compassion, and fiscal responsibility” by gathering newly elected prosecutors to enforce these policies. Although reforms are needed, the progressive methods has proven to be utter failures that put millions of Americans in danger.
While this problem runs across multiple major cities in America, soft on crime DA’s have gained the most reach in the melting pot of progressives: California. Four major counties in the state are run by these types of prosecutors, including Contra Costa, San Joaquin, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. California as a whole ranks 36th in the country for public safety and 39th in violent crime rate.
In each of these cities, the quality of life has exponentially deteriorated with an infestation of crime, filth, and lawlessness. San Francisco is well known to be a city filled with all sorts of these vices. The city has one of the highest crime rates in all of America (compared to all communities of all sizes), with a rate of 64 per 1,000 residents.
Chesa Boudin, San Francisco’s DA, has contributed to the lawlessness in the city after only a year of being in office with his progressive policies. According to the official Recall Chesa Boudin website, residents feel unsafe in their own city due to Boudin’s antics: “Elected November, 2019, Mr. Boudin has been in office barely a year, and in his disastrous social experiment of criminal justice “reform” and the so-called restorative justice model, he has instead dismantled the criminal justice system.”
Residents of Los Angeles county have also voiced their disapproval of the radical DA George Gascon by launching a recall campaign. In a city that ranks as one of the most dangerous in all of America, Gascon’s soft on crime policies add fuel to the already burning fire. Upon taking office in 2020, Gascon promised radical reforms including abolishing the death penalty, ending sentencing enhancements, and eliminating cash bail. Under Gascon, effective prosecution of serious crimes are null, with a system that favors the criminal over the victim.
Americans elect government officials in order to uphold basic laws and ensure the safety of their constituents. This has been the precedent ever since the great founding documents gave this country meaning. However, the law has been plundered by the progressive movement that has radicalized their initial intentions of common sense reform. In fact, the vast majority of the American population supports criminal justice reform, but it is not an excuse for parties and interest groups to play politics with people’s safety.
Photo via aiasurety.com
