The Trump-Level Cruelty and Lawlessness of Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon

Adam Schiff's Non-Endorsement Endorsement of Challenger Nathan Hochman Will Likely Have far Greater Impact Than the Resentencing of the Menendez Brothers in the LA County District Attorney Election

Last weekend, U.S. Senate candidate and Congressman Adam Schiff (D-Glendale) all but endorsed challenger Nathan Hochman, a former Republican, over embattled Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon, who is endorsed by the Los Angeles County Democratic Party.

When asked who he was voting for by a local reporter, Schiff replied as follows:

I’m staying out of that. Long term friendship with Nathan Hochman. We’ve been friends for over 30 years. And so I’m staying not only out of that race but out of all the DAs races in the state.¹

This is shocking.²

In California, Democratic elected officials almost always endorse their own party’s nominees for elected office. Sometimes, elected officials will defect from the Democratic Party’s endorsed candidate to back another Democrat in a top-two system race or in a non-partisan race.

However, it’s very rare to see a Democratic elected official endorse a non-Democrat for elected office or simply decline to endorse the Democrat running against a non-Democrat. It is even rarer to see a Democratic U.S. Senate nominee in California defect in this manner.

Hochman re-registered No Party Preference right before announcing his campaign for District Attorney. But not only was he previously a lifelong Republican, he was the California Republican Party’s nominee for California Attorney General in 2022.

While specifically not an endorsement, Schiff’s words basically imply it. It’s akin to the episode of Seinfeld where the New York Mets attempt to recruit George Costanza to come work for them but can’t directly recruit him until he gets fired by the New York Yankees.³

And Schiff’s word here matters. Despite what many Republicans think, Schiff is extremely well-respected and well-liked. He gained a nationwide following during the Trump Administration as one of the leading foes of Donald Trump. He cemented his reputation while serving as the chief prosecutor at the first Trump impeachment trial.

He’s about to accomplish a very rare feat for a U.S. House member from the California delegation - becoming a U.S. Senator for California. While countless House members have tried, only four House members - Richard Nixon, Clair Engel, John Tunney, and Barbara Boxer - have succeeded in getting elected Senator in the past 100 years.

Any anti-Trump Los Angeles County voter who is (1) undecided on the District Attorney’s race, (2) knows very little about the District Attorney’s race, or (3) is leaning towards Hochman but has some doubts has just received a very powerful message.

The hero who took on Donald Trump is a longtime friend of Nathan Hochman. It’s not hard to imagine an LA County voter in the process of filling out their massive ballot hearing Schiff’s words on the news, flipping to the District Attorney’s race on the ballot and filling out the bubble next to Nathan Hochman’s name.

Why would anyone who had watched the impeachment trial not want to vote for someone who Adam Schiff says is his longtime friend?

Gascon, who is the champion of the movement to elected woke progressive criminal justice reformers as chief prosecutors across the country, has been trailing badly in the polls to Hochman. Unlike 2020, where massive amounts of money fueled his campaign against then incumbent District Attorney Jackie Lacey, Gascon is at a massive financial disadvantage to Hochman.

Schiff’s non-endorsement endorsement only further helps Hochman close the deal and likely prevents any kind of miraculous Gascon comeback.

On the one hand, it seems surprising. But on the other, it makes a certain kind of sense.

When one looks at George Gascon’s record as District Attorney, there’s a particular kind of Trump-like callous cruelty towards victims and their families as well as a disregard for the laws that he personally dislikes.

Among other things, as District Attorney, Gascon has:

• Ghosted family members of murder victims.⁴

• Insulted family members of murder victims on live television.⁵

• Prohibited deputy district attorneys from attending parole hearings (including parole hearings that led to the release of Aariel Maynor who subsequently murdered Jacqueline Avant and convicted Manson Family killer Leslie Van Houten).⁶

• Implemented prosecution directives in direct contravention of California law.⁷

• Refused to prosecute clear cut hate crimes.⁸

• Engaged in numerous public disputes with his own deputy district attorneys.⁹

• Attempted to not follow the Three Strikes Laws in bringing charges against criminal defendants only to have the California Court of Appeals hold that his directives were illegal.¹⁰

• Been further slapped down by the California Court of Appeals which reminded him that he was not a king, free to disregard the laws as he pleased.¹¹

Meanwhile, at least 36 city councils in LA County have voted to declare no confidence in Gascon.¹² At a press conference last year of elected officials and law enforcement leaders on combatting mass retail theft that has been devastating local retail stores, George Gascon was conspicuously absent.¹³ When asked why he was not present, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass explained that he hadn’t been invited.¹⁴

In the March primaries, Gascon received just 25.19% of the vote countywide and did particularly terribly among Hispanic voters.

If the polls are correct, there appears to be a reverse Never Trump movement in Los Angeles County, where Kamala Harris and Schiff are both likely to receive over 70% of the vote, if not more. Gascon though is consistently polling in the low to mid 20’s. Clearly, a massive number of Democrats and liberals are defecting from their party’s choice and affirmatively crossing party lines to vote for Hochman.

These are not conservative blue dog Democrats that one typically associates with crossover voters. Instead, these are liberal Angelenos, the very people despised by Trump and MAGA. Yet, they appear to be putting country (or in this case county) before party to vote for Hochman.

This phenomenon is made possible by both the system and the candidate. The District Attorney’s race is officially non-partisan with the party affiliation of the candidates omitted on the ballot.¹⁵

Moreover, Hochman is pro-choice, and a Never Trumper himself, he endorsed Kamala Harris for President. This led to former District Attorney Steve Cooley angrily withdrawing his endorsement of Hochman and some local LA MAGA activists promising to vote for Gascon in retribution for his slight against their hero and demi-god, Donald Trump.¹⁶

But it’s not a wholly surprising endorsement for Hochman to have made. Hochman had previously endorsed Hillary Clinton in 2016 and Joe Biden in 2020.

At this point, it seems incredibly likely that Hochman will win. But it wouldn’t be an LA County District Attorney’s election though without a famous celebrity criminal defendant potentially impacting the race.

New evidence was recently discovered in the case of brothers Erik and Lyle Menendez, who famously killed their wealthy parents in 1989. Both admitted to killing their parents but sought a conviction of voluntary manslaughter, claiming that they were sexually abused by their parents and that they unreasonably feared that their parents planned to kill them.

After a hung jury in a highly publicized first trial, they were convicted of first degree murder at a second trial in 1996. Both are currently serving life sentences without the possibility of parole.

Evidence that was not known at the time of the trial has been uncovered that suggests Jose Menendez was a child sexual predator of underage boys and proves that Erik Menendez had informed other family members that he was a victim of sexual abuse at the hands of his father long before the killings.

In a big press conference that started nearly an hour late, Gascon announced that his office would file for resentencing of the Menendez brothers.¹⁷ Gascon’s proposed resentencing would make them immediately eligible for parole.¹⁸ Having served as model prisoners, both would almost certainly be released from prison if re-sentenced.¹⁹ Gascon is also now supporting a clemency petition for them.²⁰

Many have questioned the timing of Gascon’s big public announcement, made right before the election, suggesting this was purely a political move, including Hochman.²¹ Hochman has noted that the current petition from the Menendez brothers has been pending for over 18 months and that the newly discovered evidence has been available to the District Attorney’s office for just as long.

Thus, some believe that Gascon held a big press conference in order to generate earned media that his campaign could not otherwise afford. Others believe that it was designed to gain the support of major celebrities who could boost him among unlikely voters. Among others, Kim Kardashian supports the release of the Menendez brothers and has a massive following on social media.

If Gascon’s move was politically motivated, it seems unlikely to change the outcome of the election. In 2022, Kardashian conducted big pre-primary endorsement interviews of former Gascon supporter Rick Caruso in his race for Los Angeles Mayor and State Senator Henry Stern in his race for the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors. She broadcast these interviews to her tens of millions of followers.

The results?

Caruso, who spent a record amount of money was thought to be in first place and aiming to avoid a runoff by winning an outright majority in the primary, finished in second place over 6% behind Bass. Despite major labor union backing, Stern lost his primary, unexpectedly coming in third place.

The Menendez brothers saga, however compelling, has little relevance to the everyday lives of voters in Los Angeles County. Most are dissatisfied with rising crime rates and the general way in which Gascon has run the District Attorney’s office and otherwise conducted himself in office.

I think Gascon is making the right decision in this case as I believe that the Menendez brothers should be resentenced and ultimately released.

For one thing, they should have received a third trial in the 1990’s. The court denied them the right to present evidence that they were allowed to under the California Evidence Code on account that they were men and not women.²² When a court discriminates on the basis of a suspect classification, that alone is grounds for summary reversal of the conviction.²³

This alone would not be grounds to release them today. However, the newly discovered evidence could have very well changed the trial outcome and it almost certainly would have impacted the sentencing phase of the trial. In light of the fact that they have lived model lives as prisoners and support of their parents’ extended families, this is one of the rare exceptions where a resentencing is warranted.

However, Gascon appears to have made this decision for the wrong reasons. Moreover, the way in which he has handled the situation has only further demonstrated his Trump-like callous cruelty towards victims and their families.

The case of the Menendez brothers presents a fairly atypical situation as nearly all of the extended family members of Jose and Kitty Menendez support Lyle and Erik. They believe that both of them were sexually abused, killed their parents in imperfect self defense, and should now be released.

I cannot imagine the pain and humiliation that members of that family are going through right now. They are acknowledging that their own family members were either incestuous child rapists or proactive enablers. A number of them are stating that they were in some ways complicit, ignoring signs of sexual abuse that in retrospect were obvious. Many carry tremendous guilt over what occurred.

Moreover, if they are unsuccessful in persuading the District Attorney, their relatives will spend the rest of their natural lives in prison.

Imagine the pain coupled with the hope of hearing that the District Attorney might finally listen and resentence the Menendez brothers and their anxiety in waiting to find out whether Gascon would side with them.

But when were the family members informed of Gascon’s decision?

At the press conference with everyone else in the media present and the world watching as Gascon announced his decision.

Gascon had invited family members to travel to LA but he had not told them what he was planning to do, leaving them in anxious suspense. He had even invited some relatives come up to the podium where he gave his press conference.

In so many ways, it’s cruel to the extended Menendez family. While they went through a host of emotions and relived the trauma, Gascon acted without any consideration for their feelings.

But treating victims as irrelevant isn’t anything new for Gascon. As District Attorney, he’s insulted victims and even ghosted them. He’s also waited for press conferences to let victims know what he’s planning to charge.

In the case of murdered Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Deputy Ryan Clinkunbroomer, , Gascon invited Clinkunbroomer’s family members to stand beside him at a press conference where he announced that he wouldn’t pursue the death penalty.²⁴

The appearance of the family members at his side made it look as though they supported his decision to not pursue the death penalty. They didn’t. They sat in stunned silence, having just learned.²⁵

Basic human decency would dictate that a prosecutor would at least bother to inform relatives of a victim of what charges they planned to bring ahead of telling the media. This would be true especially if they weren’t the charges that the family wanted so that they would at least know and be prepared.

That’s not something Gascon is capable of doing.

There’s another cruel aspect to Gascon’s tenure as District Attorney that became readily apparent during his big press conference on the Menendez brothers. Gascon bragged about the number of times that his office has helped re-sentence over 332 convicted felons since he took over as District Attorney.

For Gascon, resentencing the Menendez brothers is not about correcting a past mistake but part of his larger scheme of freeing as many incarcerated felons as possible. He has even claimed that he thinks the sentence for the Menendez brothers was appropriate at the time. But he wishes to carry out his mission of resentencing offenders.

What’s the reasoning behind Gascon’s efforts to reduce this many sentences?

He simply feels that the prison sentences are too long and not present for any of the trials, he simply feels that he should unilaterally reduce sentences. What occurred at trial doesn’t matter. He is above judge, jury, and appeals court and if he believes that someone has been too harshly punished, he will unilaterally change it.

Turning the District Attorney’s office into a post-conviction relief unit seems like an inappropriate and unwise use of government resources.

Beyond that though, there’s a certain cruelty to families of crime victims, who deserve finality in their cases.²⁶

Imagine though that you are a person in this position. You lost a loved one to a violent crime. The offender is convicted and sentenced to life without parole. You were devastated by what occurred. But you can at least rest assured that the violent criminal who committed the act will never see freedom ever again and you won’t have to look at the monster ever again. You at least have a chance to heal.

Or you thought you did.

Suddenly, your life is upended by George Gascon. You once again have to relive the trauma of what occurred.²⁷ You have to suffer the anxiety of this offender once again roaming the streets, free to do to others what they did to your loved one. You have to spend your time and energy and money to keep this individual in jail.

It’s not because they’re actually innocent. It’s not because of the discovery of new evidence that should have been heard at sentencing that would have likely changed the outcome.

Instead, it’s because in his personal opinion, Gascon has decided to substitute his personal judgment over the court’s and has concluded that the sentence was simply too long and he thinks it should be lighter. Besides, Gascon has taken on the role of a pseudo-parole board and in his own evaluation, thinks the offender has cleaned up their act enough to be released.

He’s not done this a small handful of times where circumstances have warranted it (as they most assuredly do like in the Menendez case). He’s done it 332 times.

There’s a Trump-like certain cruelty to it.

California has created extensive victim-protection laws and the sentence of life without the possibility of parole.²⁸ Gascon strongly dislikes these laws. And he’s entitled to dislike them. As my wise and studious older brother is fond of saying, “Opinions are like assholes. Everybody’s got one.”

However, as an elected official, he is presumed to know and follow the law.²⁹ It’s clear though that he doesn’t care to follow those laws with which he personally disagrees.

In sum, Gascon:

1. Is an ideologue, who places his ideology above real world consequences.

2. Cannot competently run the District Attorney’s office in carrying out its basic duties.

3. Has a cruel and callous disregard for victims of crime that demonstrates a near total lack of empathy.

4. Thinks he is above the law, believing he is entitled to simply not follow the laws he does not like.

In that regard, is it any real surprise that Adam Schiff is indirectly telling voters to vote for an ex-Republican over him?

1. https://x.com/Elex_Michaelson/status/1848059571648028772/video/1

2. The author of this article is an attorney licensed to practice in the State of California and the District of Columbia. This article and all of the works on this Substack page are statements of the opinions of the author, only, and do not constitute legal advice; they are not intended to be relied upon by any individual or entity in any transaction or other legal matter, past, pending, or future. A paid subscription to this Substack page supports the author’s scholarship and provides access to research that the author has compiled, but does not establish an attorney-client relationship. The author does not accept unsolicited requests for legal advice or representation, and this Substack page is not intended as legal advertising. The opinions expressed on this Substack page reflect the personal views of the author only.

3.

4. https://www.theblaze.com/news/mom-of-la-shooting-victim-confronts-da-gascon-about-progressive-policies-that-show-more-sympathy-to-criminals

5. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/la-county-da-gascon-complains-murder-victims-family-cant-keep-their-mouth-shut-issues-apology

6. https://theavtimes.com/2022/07/14/op-ed-gascon-delivers-another-gut-punch-to-victims/

7. https://spectrumnews1.com/ca/la-west/politics/2022/06/02/appeals-court-panel-upholds-injunction-blocking-gasc-n-directives

8. https://lamag.com/featured/george-gascon-hate-crimes

9. https://lamag.com/featured/gascon-jon-hatami-district-attorney

10. The Association of Deputy District Attorneys etc. v. Gascon, 79 Cal. App. 5th 503, 528-538 (Cal. 2022)(holding that George Gascon’s special directives mandating that prosecutors ignore the Three Strikes Law in prosecuting was unlawful).

11. The Association of Deputy District Attorneys etc. v. Gascon, 79 Cal. App. 5th 503, 521 (Cal. 2022)(“The district attorney overstates his authority. He is an elected official who must comply with the law, not a sovereign with absolute, unreviewable discretion.”).

12. See https://www.foxla.com/news/pico-rivera-becomes-3rd-city-to-approve-vote-of-no-confidence-in-gascons-reforms ; https://www.recalldageorgegascon.com/

13. https://www.californiacountynews.org/news/2023/08/george-gasc%C3%B3n-conspicuously-absent-las-retail-crime-task-force-announcement

14. https://medium.com/stone-cold-crime-stories/la-county-da-george-gascon-not-invited-to-a-press-conference-on-organized-retail-theft-4878d4671c37

15. Cal. Const. Art. II, § 6(a)(“All judicial, school, county, and city offices, including the Superintendent of Public Instruction, shall be nonpartisan.”).

16. http://www.metnews.com/articles/2024/withdrawnendorse_081924.htm

17. https://abcnews.go.com/US/la-da-announce-decision-potential-resentencing-menendez-brothers/story?id=114811599

18. https://www.nbclosangeles.com/investigations/read-the-menendez-brothers-resentencing-memo-filed-by-the-la-county-da/3544378/

19. https://www.cnn.com/2024/10/25/us/erik-lyle-menendez-brothers-resentencing-whats-next/index.html

20. https://www.cbsnews.com/losangeles/news/menendez-brothers-will-face-resentencing-court-hearing-in-december/

21. https://www.newsnationnow.com/banfield/la-da-candidate-menendez-brothers-case-political/