Page 3
ADDA Backs Hochman for District Attorney
By a MetNews Staff Writer
The Association of Deputy District Attorneys has endorsed former Assistant Attorney General Nathan Hochman for district attorney, it was announced yesterday.
Hochman is in a run-off with District Attorney George Gascón.
Michele Hanisee, president of the ADDA, said:
“The ADDA believes that Nathan Hochman is the best candidate to support a pro-labor workplace agenda and to foster a constructive, open and collaborative relationship with the ADDA and its members. We appreciate his commitment to the work done by our prosecutors and look forward to building a positive working relationship that benefits our members and the public.”
Hochman, a former president of the Los Angeles City Ethics Commission commented:
“I’m extremely proud that the ADDA has voted to endorse me over their boss, George Gascón, who has recklessly and repeatedly trampled on their rights, retaliated against prosecutors who questioned his dangerous pro-criminal policies and prevented these hard-working prosecutors from fully advocating for victims. When I am elected, I will work tirelessly to support our County’s talented prosecutors, rebuild our office’s relationship with law enforcement, restore public safety and send a message to criminals that there will be consequences for their actions.”
The ADDA said in a statement:
“In his first day in office in 2020, Gascón implemented nine policy directives that greatly limited the sentences prosecutors could seek, prohibited the filing of many sentencing enhancements and prevented deputy district attorneys from attending parole hearings for murderers sentenced to life in prison. Prosecutors who questioned or criticized Gascon’s policies were unjustly disciplined, leading to a series of employment lawsuits that have already cost Los Angeles County taxpayers millions of dollars.
“When these policies became public and were followed by a significant increase in violent and property crimes, an effort to recall Gascon from office was initiated. Some 97.8 percent of prosecutors voted to support Gascon’s recall—an unprecedented rebuke of a sitting district attorney.”
Addressing the deputies’ vote in a 2022 plebiscite, Hochman remarked:
“If he were CEO of a public company and 98% of his workforce approved a no-confidence vote, he would either resign or be removed by the Board of Directors. In a democracy, he can be removed by voters—and I along with the ADDA board look forward to that day.”
Copyright 2024, Metropolitan News Company