(The Center Square) – Amid a wave of rising violent and property crime, Los Angeles voters are overwhelmingly backing former federal prosecutor Nathan Hochman for Los Angeles County District Attorney over the incumbent George Gascon, who won his first term with the financial support of George Soros.
New polling from the University of Southern California has Hochman up by more than two to one against Gascon, while enthusiasm for Hochman among donors is so high that his campaign has reached the legal fundraising cap of $2.5 million. Hochman will be donating any additional funds raised to a new nonprofit supporting victims of crime and anti-recidivism programs.
“Thank you to the thousands of people from all corners of this county and all political perspectives who donated to my campaign to make sure I have the resources to spread the message that I am the best candidate to restore balance to the D.A.’s Office and make Los Angeles County safer,” Hochman said in a statement. “I am now raising money for the LA County DA Foundation, which will support programs that I strongly believe in.”
Hochman has raised $4.7 million, a record sum for the LA DA race, and has run on clearing out Gascon’s more than 10,000 case backlog of unfiled cases, and ending “pro-criminal polices” that have “increased crime.” In 2023, shoplifting in Los Angeles was up 62%; in San Francisco, where Gascon’s handpicked successor was recalled and replaced by a moderate Democrat, shoplifting declined 21%.
The USC poll of 1,685 likely voters across the state during the middle of September has Hochman at 44.4%, Gascon at 20.3%, and 32.8% undecided, meaning Gascon would need to win nearly every single undecided vote to stay in office.
Gascon’s office recently issued a press release highlighting how his filing of murder cases has remained consistent with the average since 2016.
“The consistency in our murder filing rates from the last administration to my administration is a testament to our office’s resolute dedication and the tireless efforts of our prosecutors, investigators, and law enforcement partners,” said Gascon in a statement. “This stability in our filing rates underscores the effectiveness of our collaborative approach to addressing the most serious crimes and reinforces our pledge to ensure that every case is thoroughly pursued.”
Using the headline percentages — actual numbers of cases filed were not provided in the release — Gascon’s office averaged an 85.3% filing rate for murder cases, compared to an average of 87.4% since 2016. While Gascon’s murder filing rate has declined only slightly, one of his first acts as DA was to implement a policy of seeking zero sentencing enhancements, not prosecuting minors for any misdemeanors, and not prosecuting 13 common misdemeanors, including trespass, driving with no license or a suspended license, criminal threats, drinking in public and public intoxication, and loitering to commit prostitution.
“The percentage of cases that are filed is not nearly as significant as the charges that are filed, and the convictions and sentences that are obtained. Gascon will not release those numbers because they will show he doesn’t sentence dangerous criminals to anywhere near what is appropriate,” said Hochman to The Center Square in response to Gascon’s murder filing data. “He once again is trying to gaslight the public into believing he is tough on crime when in reality he is only tough on victims, who over and over and over again watch as their assailants receive far less time than they deserve.”
Shoplifting, assaults, robberies, and stolen vehicles are rising significantly in California, with shoplifting reports up 39% in 2023. Recently, California Gov. Gavin Newsom touted a national FBI-reported decline in violent crime, but didn’t include the fat that the same 2023 FBI data found California violent crime to be up and the value of cars stolen in the state surpassing $2 billion.
