Metropolitan News-Enterprise: Two Deputy DAs Sue Over Alleged Whistleblower Retaliation

Two prosecutors are suing Los Angeles County for whistleblower retaliation, claiming they are being penalized for refusing to adhere to unlawful policies instituted by District Attorney George Gascón.

The plaintiffs, in separate actions filed Wednesday, are Head Deputy Shawn Randolph and Assistant Head Deputy Lesley Klein Sonnenberg. Each is represented by Beverly Hills attorney Gregory W. Smith and others in his office.

At the time Gascón took office on Dec. 7, Randolph was head deputy in charge of the office’s Juvenile Division, supervising about 50 attorneys and 50 laypersons. On his first day in the job, he issued a spate of special directives, one of which, 20-09, concerned the prosecution of juvenile offenders.

Randolph balked at following the directive and in retaliation, she alleges, she was transferred to the Parole Division, which her complaint describes as “a dead-end position for a Head Deputy.”

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KFI AM 640: Second Deputy DA Alleges Retaliation for Protesting DA Directive

LOS ANGELES (CNS) – A second veteran prosecutor in as many days is suing Los Angeles County, alleging she has suffered a backlash by being transferred to a less prestigious job for complaining about directives set forth after the November election of District Attorney George Gascon.

Deputy District Attorney Lesley Klein Sonnenberg’s lawsuit was brought Wednesday, a day after a similar complaint was filed by Deputy District Attorney Shawn Randolph. Both Los Angeles Superior Court suits seek unspecified damages.

A spokesman for the District Attorney’s Office said after the Randolph filing that the agency could not comment on pending litigation.

At the time of Gascon’s election, Sonnenberg was the assistant head prosecutor in charge of the District Attorney’s Office’s Family Violence Division, according to her suit.

After Gascon was sworn into office on Dec. 7, he released a directives requiring prosecutors in the Family Violence Division to stop filing sentencing enhancement strikes against rapists and violent domestic abuse suspects, even though they are required to be brought under the state Penal Code, the Sonnenberg suit states.

In late December, Sonnenberg prepared a document entitled “Justification for Filing Strikes” in which she explained why she refused to adhere to Gascon’s policies and disclosed to him that she would continue to file strikes against repeat offenders, the Sonnenberg suit states.

In January, Sonnenberg sent Gascon an email stating that he was relying on faulty statistics to support his belief that long prison terms created higher recidivism rates and she provided him with multiple studies that contradicted his “unlawful approach to prosecution,” according to the Sonnenberg suit.

Sonnenberg believes her complaints to Gascon resulted in her not being selected for a promotion to acting head deputy of the Family Violence Division in January and later to the permanent head prosecutor position in April, which was instead given to someone less qualified, according to the Sonnenberg suit.

Sonnenberg was transferred to Consumer Protections Division, a “dead-end position” for her because she has no experience in civil law or in the civil courts, the Sonnenberg suit states.

“Plaintiff was transferred into a position in which she was literally a duck out of water,” the Sonnenberg suit states. “After decades of learning criminal law and procedure, and close to retirement, plaintiff is now in a position that she does not fully understand and at which she will certainly not excel.”

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SLO County: Following Robbery of Senator Boxer, DA’s Call for Withdrawal of Dangerous Petty Theft Legislation

Message from District Attorney Dan Dow

Dan Dow announced today that he, along with his colleagues in the California District Attorneys Association, publicly call for withdrawal of Senate Bill 82 because it is absurdly unsafe for Californians.

There was nothing petty about what happened to former U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer yesterday—it was a violent robbery, and it was awful. This crime occurred in broad daylight in Oakland’s Jack London District, a popular tourist destination that also happens to be in the California Senate District of Senator Nancy Skinner. The same Senator who proposed declaring such horrific crimes to be misdemeanor petty thefts under SB 82.

Make no mistake, this was a strong-arm robbery of an 80-year-old grandmother. Fortunately, she was not seriously injured. While Senator Boxer is prominent and a household name due to her lengthy tenure in Congress, there are countless other lesser- known victims who have endured similar attacks. To be clear, all these victims were subjected to a violent crime, and it would be a terrible insult to minimize their trauma by calling it misdemeanor petty theft—a low-level offense that is eligible for diversion. Recent reforms have gone too far—it is time to withdraw SB 82. This is a reckless proposal that only encourages lawlessness.

“This is exactly why I am opposing the ridiculous bill,” said San Luis Obispo County District Attorney Dan Dow.  “Downgrading a violent robbery to a petty theft is legislative malpractice.  It will encourage violent behavior and make our community more dangerous.”

In March of this year, District Attorney Dow sent a letter to the California Senate Public Safety Committee in strong opposition to SB 82 and encouraged them to refocus on the needs of victims and survivors of crime.  To view that letter and press release, click here.

Please contact Assistant District Attorney Eric J. Dobroth at 805.781.5819 with any questions.

The California District Attorneys Association is a statewide training and advocacy organization representing elected district attorneys, city attorneys with criminal divisions, and more than 3,500 prosecutors.

KFI AM 640: Deputy DA Alleges Retaliation for Protesting DA’s Juvenile Directive

LOS ANGELES (CNS) – A veteran prosecutor is suing Los Angeles County, alleging she has been denied important positions in retaliation for complaining about directives set forth after the November election of District Attorney George Gascon.

Deputy District Attorney Shawn Randolph’s Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit, filed Tuesday, seeks unspecified damages.

A representative for the District Attorney’s Office did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

At the time of Gascon’s election, Randolph was the head prosecutor in charge of the District Attorney’s Office’s Juvenile Division, in which she supervised about 50 lawyers and 50 civilian workers, the suit states. On Feb. 1, she was transferred the parole division, a “dead-end position for a head deputy,” the suit states.

Randolph was denied transfers to head the District Attorney’s branch offices in Torrance and Long Beach Superior Courts even though she was the most qualified applicant for each position, the suit states.

After Gascon was sworn into office Dec. 7, he released numerous directives, including a policy that, among other things, mandated that Randolph use alternative theories of prosecution that minimized a juvenile’s criminal conduct, no matter how violent the offenses, the suit states.

“In essence, plaintiff was directed not to file strike offenses against juveniles and this directive creates a false and misleading description to the court of the crimes that were actually committed,” the suit states.

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ABA Journal: LA district attorney’s past drives his push forward for reform

Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón knows how to cope with controversy. He faced it as police chief in Mesa, Arizona, when he clashed with Sheriff Joe Arpaio and his hardline immigration policies. And as San Francisco’s top prosecutor, he riled law enforcement groups after pushing for a host of reforms.

Even so, more than seven months into Gascón’s new job as LA’s top prosecutor, resistance to his policies has reached dizzying peaks. Since beating the incumbent district attorney, Jackie Lacey, in the November 2020 general election, the 67-year-old faces a court challenge from the union that represents his own prosecutors and a recall effort that is gaining steam. With the national push for reform and rising gun violence and homicides in the foreground, advocates are watching closely to see how the high-stakes battle plays out.

Gascón wasted no time shaking things up. Soon after his December 7 swearing in, he announced sweeping directives to reduce prison terms, including thousands of old cases involving murder and other violent crimes as well as reforms to end cash bail and the death penalty. His stance as the “godfather of progressive prosecutors” has pleased activists who are among the 2 million-plus voters who chose him to head the largest district attorney’s office in the nation.

But the victims’ families leading the recall effort say Gascón is abusing the powers of his office. Desiree Andrade, a campaign organizer and spokesman for the Recall George Gascón campaign, is a registered Democrat. Andrade’s son Julian, then 20, was kidnapped then tortured and murdered in 2018. She says because of Gascón’s policies, her son’s killers will be eligible for parole rather than facing life in prison.

“You, George Gascón, have put criminals before victims. I truly believe you have confused your role as a district attorney and a public defender,” Andrade said at a May press conference to formally start a signature-gathering effort that has a long shot chance of leading to a recall election in 2022.

Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva is one high-profile politician who joined the recall effort by adding his name to the petitions. The campaign will need 597,000 verified signatures by October for a recall election. Meanwhile, more than two dozen cities in California have given Gascón a vote of no confidence.

Amid the recall effort and the lawsuit, Gascón remains unfazed. He blames the pushback on old ways of thinking about the criminal justice system, particularly among prosecutors within his own office.

“They are addicted to high levels of incarceration and punishment,” Gascón says of the staff members who oppose his reforms. “They view themselves as the thin line between chaos and safety, and they think the best way they can help the community is by being punitive in their approach.”

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Daily News: La Verne leaders declare no confidence in LA County DA

La Verne has become the latest city to issue a vote of no confidence in Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón.

In a 3-2 vote Monday, July 19, the City Council agreed to condemn directives from the District Attorney’s Office, calling the policies a risk to public safety. Councilmember Wendy Lau and Muir Davis vote against the resolution.

La Verne becomes the 24th city in the county to pass a no-confidence vote targeting the DA. Last week, the San Dimas City Council voted 4-0 to approve a similar resolution, joining cities including Walnut, Norwalk and La Habra Heights that have recently taken no confidence votes.

Many of these cities have cited the DA’s polices — eliminating cash bail for misdemeanors and nonviolent offenses, taking the death penalty off the table in all cases, and eliminating sentencing enhancements — as reasons for their votes of no confidence. The votes are symbolic and do not impact the DA’s office.

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Daily Bulletin: San Dimas leaders have ‘no confidence’ in LA County DA

With little comment at a meeting earlier this week, the San Dimas City Council cast a vote of no confidence in Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón.

In a 4-0 vote Tuesday, July 13, San Dimas leaders approved a resolution calling out directives from the District Attorney’s Office, which they described as “detrimental to the city.” Councilmember Eric Weber was absent from the meeting.

“DA Gascon’s reforms are eliminating key components of the criminal justice system itself, undermining law enforcement’s ability to effectively police our communities, and dismantling the rule of law in Los Angeles County,” the resolution read.

San Dimas is the 23nd city in the county to pass a no-confidence vote targeting Gascón. In La Verne, the City Council there is set to consider a similar action against Gascón on Monday, July 19.

The other cities that have adopted similar resolutions include Arcadia, Azusa, Beverly Hills, Covina, Diamond Bar, Hidden Hills, Lancaster, La Habra Heights, La Mirada, Manhattan Beach, Norwalk, Palos Verdes Estates, Pico Rivera, Redondo Beach, Rosemead, San Gabriel, Santa Clarita, Santa Fe Springs, Temple City, Torrance, Walnut and Whittier.

Many of these cities have cited the DA’s polices — eliminating cash bail for misdemeanors and nonviolent offenses, taking  the death penalty off the table in all cases, and eliminating sentencing enhancements — as reasons for their votes of no confidence. The votes are symbolic and do not impact the DA’s office.

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Antelope Valley Press: Pressure mounts against LA’s DA

PALMDALE — Frustrated with the policies of Los Angeles County District Attorney Gascón, the Palmdale City Council is investigating filing criminal charges in some misdemeanor cases itself through the city attorney, and is considering a vote of no confidence in Gascón.

Gascón was elected in November and immediately set in motion sweeping criminal justice reforms, including a halt to seeking harsher sentences through special enhancements and the elimination of cash bail for any misdemeanor.

Additionally, he directed deputy district attorneys to reject filing 13 types of charges, with some exceptions, including items such as trespassing, driving without a valid or a suspended license, disturbing the peace, resisting arrest, criminal threats, public intoxication, minor in possession of alcohol, loitering, drug possession and under the influence of control substances, according to City Attorney Christopher Beck.

 

Beck reported Tuesday that through May this year, the District Attorney’s office has rejected 1,208 cases for filing, a rate of 59%. This compares to the previous two years, prior to Gascón’s election, in which the office rejected 13% and 21%, respectively.

“It is just astonishing to me that we’ve reached this point,” Councilmember Richard Loa said. “All of those are offenses that affect human beings and affect our residents.”

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San Dimas Community Post: San Dimas Casts Vote of No Confidence in LA District Attorney

San Dimas joined dozens of other cities in Los Angeles County, casting a vote of no confidence in Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón and signaling disapproval for Gascón’s policies.

Mayor Emmett Badar ended a June 22 city council meeting discussion about the DA’s policies and impacts with a motion for a vote of no confidence.

“We’re a law enforcement, or a law-abiding, community that just wants fairness to both the residents and to the victims,” Badar said during the meeting.

The motion passed unanimously, with city staff being tasked to draft a strongly-worded resolution that encompasses concerns brought forward by city officials and local residents. The council approved the formal resolution and vote of no confidence in a 4-0 vote on July 13. Councilmember Eric Weber was absent from the meeting.

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Whittier Daily News: Man sentenced to death for triple murder in Downey; judge refuses to allow DA’s statement

A parolee was sentenced to death Thursday for murdering three people and trying to kill two others in Downey while posing as a prospective buyer of a Chevrolet Camaro.

Jade Douglas Harris — who was prosecuted under prior Los Angeles County District Attorney Jackie Lacey’s administration — is the first person to be sentenced to death during current District Attorney George Gascon’s administration.

Superior Court Judge Raul A. Sahagun refused to allow a statement to be read in court on behalf of Gascon, according to Deputy District Attorney John McKinney. The county’s top prosecutor reiterated in that statement that he “does not believe the death penalty is an appropriate punishment in any case” and asked that the court consider Gascon’s policy on the death penalty “in exercising its sentencing discretion in this matter.”

The judge, who had earlier denied a motion for a new trial, also rejected an automatic motion to reduce the jury’s March 2020 recommendation of death for the 39-year-old defendant to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

In a Tweet posted shortly before the sentencing, McKinney called it “one of the most horrendous crimes I ever prosecuted.”

“If he committed the same murders today, DA Gascon wouldn’t charge special circs (circumstances) or gun allegations and Harris would be eligible for parole after just 20 years,” the prosecutor wrote in his Tweet.

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