In Memoriam
Let us all take a few moments this holiday to remember those who fought and died for the freedom we cherish.
Monthly Archive: May 2021
LA Co. Judge Reinstates Sentencing Charges After Victims Object
There has been a significant development in the victims’ revolt against LA DA George Gascón’s reckless policies.
Judge Rob Villeza of the East Judicial District of LA Superior Court, in Pomona, initially dismissed special circumstance allegations against Raymond Gonzalez, who is charged with two counts of murder and carjacking. The dismissal was based on a motion by the District Attorney’s Office under the DA’s special directives to never charge special circumstances and to dismiss any pending special circumstance allegations. But then the victims’ families sought reconsideration. Continue reading . . .
Will the Violent Crime Surge Spark Electoral Pushback?
Rich Lowry writing in Politico thinks so. His piece is titled, “Democrats Ignore the Crime Spike at Their Own Peril.”
On the anniversary of the death of George Floyd, dozens of gunshots rang out in the middle of the day at George Floyd Square in Minneapolis, forcing reporters and bystanders to duck and cover.
The symbolism was unmistakable—the yearlong bout of protest and activism after Floyd’s killing has coincided with a surge of urban crime that has made gunplay dismayingly common.
Will the electorate react in next year’s elections?
DAs Sue to Block Inmate Releases
44 elected District Attorneys filed a lawsuit in Sacramento Superior Court yesterday seeking to block the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) from granting early releases to 76,000 of the state’s most dangerous criminals. In a press release, Sacramento District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert, who is leading the effort, noted that on Friday, April 30, 2021 the CDCR announced “emergency regulations” to award increased good time credits to the bulk of inmates currently in prison. On May 17, 2021 the District Attorneys sent a letter to the head of CDCR asking her to repeal the regulations and follow normal state rules for implementing a policy of this magnitude. CDCR did not respond to the letter.
LA DA Recall Signature Drive Kicks Off
The signature drive to recall Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón kicked off yesterday, Wendy Burch reports for KTLA 5. Among the initial signers were County Sheriff Alex Villanueva and former DA Steve Cooley.
The primary push behind the drive, though, is from victims of crime and the families of victims who have seen the current DA dole out shocking leniency to people have committed horrible crimes.
Among them is Desiree Andrade. Last December, just one week after Gascón’s infamous special directives, the special circumstance allegations were dismissed against the killers who beat and stabbed her son, stomped on his head, and threw him off a cliff. Bill Melugin of Fox 11 had this report at the time. The lack of the special circumstance charge not only precludes the death penalty, but it also precludes a sentence of life without parole, meaning the killers will eventually be eligible for parole. Continue reading . . .
Stabbed in the Back by Softness on Crime
City News Service reports:
A man who was sentenced to 196 years to life in prison for his role in a series of San Diego drive-by slayings, but was released last year due to changes to state law regarding juvenile defendants, was ordered Monday to stand trial for allegedly robbing and stabbing a stranger in El Cajon.
Dejon Satterwhite, 32, is accused of stabbing a man in the back on March 11, about six months after he was released from state prison. Continue reading . . .
Archive Is Available
Maintenance has been completed on C&C’s archive blog, containing posts from the beginning in 2006 through 2019. The archive is now available here. The link is also at the bottom of the right sidebar on the home page of the current blog.
The Perfect Storm for Crime to Flourish in San Francisco
In San Francisco fear has become part of life for many of its residents. According to this article by Kenny Choi of CBS San Francisco:
Residents in San Francisco say they don’t feel safe amid an alarming rise in the number of burglaries across the city. Residents say the initial response form San Francisco police went nowhere. So after someone broke into her complex in the middle of the night, [Iryna] Gorb started sleuthing, obsessively collecting evidence on her own from neighbors’ cameras.
A Spring Weekend in New York
With everything in bloom and temperatures in the 70s New Yorkers went out to enjoy the city last weekend and violent criminals were there to greet them. Fox News reports that thirty-one people were shot from Friday, May 21 thru Sunday, May 23, with six fatalities. One victim, a 34-year-old woman eating at a restaurant in Prospect Heights was hit in the face by a bullet fragment from an apparent gang shootout on Washington Avenue. The New York Daily News reports that a 31-year-old man walking past the restaurant with his wife was also shot during the same incident. There were fifty shootings in the city last week, a 257% increase over the same week a year ago. Over 2020 as we watched news broadcasts of cell phone video showing multiple incidents of NYPD officers being attacked while trying to make arrests or sitting in patrol cars, city leaders were busy releasing arrestees on zero bail and emptying out jails to protect criminals from Covid 19. Earlier this year, as part of a police reform package, the City Council eliminated qualified immunity for police accused of using excessive force. So-called criminal justice reform is increasing crime in New York City.
Unlawful Reentry Statute Means What It Says
The U.S. Supreme Court decided this morning that a statute regarding illegal reentry to the United States after being deported means what it says. Justice Sotomayor wrote the unanimous opinion of the Court in United States v. Palomar-Santiago, No. 20-437. Continue reading . . .
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