New effort announced to try to recall LA County DA George Gascón

A new effort was announced Monday to try to oust Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón from office within months of a similar recall campaign falling short.

Supporters of the recall could begin collecting signatures in January or February, according to Karen Roseberry, a spokeswoman for Recall Gascón Now.

“The people are frustrated. Crime is rising,” Roseberry said. “There is no reason we can’t get him recalled.”

She noted that the city councils of 31 cities within Los Angeles County have issued “no confidence” votes involving Gascón.

In mid-September, organizers of the prior recall attempt said the effort was hampered by COVID-19 pandemic health mandates, along with a “premature start” and vowed to re-launch their bid to recall the county’s top prosecutor, who was sworn in nearly a year ago.

Despite the failure of the original effort, organizers said then that they remained committed to recalling Gascón, who has come under fire from critics for a progressive agenda that has included directives against seeking the death penalty and dropping sentence-enhancing allegations in criminal cases.

Gascón has repeatedly defended his policies, saying his stances were well-known during his campaign and his election signified public support of his agenda.

A campaign spokesman told the Los Angeles Times the original recall drive had collected about 200,000 signatures. The group needed about 580,000 signatures by Oct. 26 to force a recall election.

Roseberry said organizers will probably need about that many verified signatures for the recall effort to go before voters.

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