New Los Angeles DA vows to reverse predecessor's 'social experiments'

LOS ANGELES — Los Angeles' newly elected district attorney is vowing to take a tougher-on-crime approach and rebuild trust within an office in open rebellion against progressive George Gascón, whom voters have resoundingly ousted.

Nathan Hochman, a Republican-turned-independent former prosecutor and defense attorney, cruised to a victory early Wednesday morning on a message of reversing what he’s called Gascón’s “social experiments” and tapping into state laws that allow district attorneys to take a heavier-handed approach to prosecuting property crimes.

He’s the latest in a wave of centrist and conservative DAs who’ve unseated progressive incumbents on the West Coast.

But Hochman stopped short of casting his campaign as a repudiation of criminal justice reform, instead focusing his campaign squarely on Gascón and promising to restore a district attorney’s office that has been roiled by internal rancor over Gascón’s progressive policies. The DA faced sharp criticism amid a spike in property crimes like car thefts and shoplifting.

That message permeated his watch party in Beverly Hills throughout Tuesday night. Videos played on large screens featured crime victims and their families telling stories about how Gascón had abandoned them, interspersed with critiques from prosecutors who say the office’s policies have obstructed their jobs and forced hundreds of staff members to leave.

“I have worked for five different district attorneys, both Democrat and Republican,” said Jessie McGrath, a Los Angeles County deputy district attorney. “But the level of mismanagement and incompetence that I have witnessed over the last three and a half years from this administration has been staggering.”

Gascón offered a defiant concession message Wednesday morning as he trailed by more than 20 percent.

“The rightward shift across America last night is heartbreaking,” he said in a statement. “Democrats have a long road ahead, but the work is more vital than ever and our commitment will not waver.

“Nevertheless, I have called Mr. Hochman and wish him the best as Los Angeles County’s next District Attorney,” he continued. “I’m deeply proud of what we’ve accomplished over the past four years and grateful to the communities who have been and will always be the heart of criminal justice reform.”

Gascón came into office promising to turn back the county’s history of lock ‘em up law enforcement. He ended cash bail, declined to seek the death penalty and halted the use of sentencing enhancements, a position he partially rolled back over time.

Amid the coronavirus pandemic crime spike, however, those policies sparked instant controversy. Opponents launched two recall attempts, both of which failed to qualify for the ballot. Gascón attracted a slew of challengers in his reelection race; Hochman, the best fundraiser of the pack, emerged as his challenger.

“Safety is a crossover issue,” he told reporters at the watch party. “Whether you're on the left or the right, whether you're black, white, Latino, Asian, people want to be safe again in this community, they want the police to actually do a very good job at their job.”

Hochman, who in 2022 unsuccessfully ran as a Republican for attorney general in a race won by Rob Bonta, has recast himself as a moderate independent who believes in tougher penalties for crimes, without taking the department too far to the right.

“My husband is, and has always been, a centrist,” said his wife, Vivienne Vella. “He's not a far-right extremist because he was once a Republican. Nathan has always believed that criminal justice reform and public safety are not mutually exclusive.”

Hochman said Tuesday that while Proposition 36, the successful initiative to increase property crime penalties, will give DAs more tools to do their jobs, rising crime in the county is squarely on Gascón’s refusal to enforce state laws already on the books.

He stopped short saying he would completely dismantle Gascon’s initiatives, instead embracing the office’s increased prosecution of police officers for misconduct and the creation of a unit that analyzes cases to determine if innocent people are behind bars.

“Not only would I keep that unit, I would actually scale it up,” Hochman said.