Petition organizers have submitted thousands of signatures to recall Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price, the latest prosecutor backed by Democratic megadonor George Soros to face ouster over concerns about rising lawlessness.
Save Alameda County For Everyone in Oakland, California, turned in 123,387 signatures to qualify the recall question for the ballot, well above the 73,195 threshold, accusing her of “jeopardizing the safety of every resident and business in Alameda County by failing to enforce the law.”
“We’re sending the wrong message to the people committing crimes when there’s no consequences,” recall organizer Carl Chan said at a news conference outside Alameda County Superior Courthouse in Oakland.
The county has 10 days to verify the signatures. If the measure qualifies, the Board of Supervisors would be charged with calling a special election that organizers said could occur as early as May.
Ms. Price has only been in office for 14 months. She was elected with 53% of the vote in November 2022 after losing her 2018 bid. She received more than $1 million in her races from three political action committees funded by Mr. Soros, according to the Law Enforcement Legal Defense Fund.
Despite her brief tenure, Ms. Price has “already destroyed the integrity of the legal system,” Mr. Chan said.
“DA Price has unapologetically empowered criminals in an unprecedented way by refusing to charge cases, lowering sentences, and gutting the District Attorney’s Office of experienced, competent prosecutors,” said the recall campaign. “DA Price has replaced those dedicated prosecutors with unqualified and often incompetent individuals who have never fought for victims or prosecuted a criminal case.”
The recall effort against Chesa Boudin gathered around 83,487 signatures. San Francisco has almost double the population of Oakland. In the case of Pamela Price, more than a quarter of the population of Oak signed for her recall, resulting in 123,000 signatures on the petition. https://t.co/vIPyDjkEcr
— Tom (@ThomasJ79x) March 4, 2024
The anti-recall Protect the Win campaign swung back by sending a letter Monday to California Secretary of State Shirley Weber asking her to ensure that “every single signature is individually reviewed and verified.”
The group warned that a special election could cost the taxpayers $20 million and accused “a handful of super-rich people,” including hedge-fund partner Philip Dreyfuss and developer Isaac Abid, of seeking to “undermine the results of a fair and free election.”
“This undemocratic effort threatens to undo the strides we’ve made in Alameda County toward a more equitable criminal justice system,” Protect the Win said Sunday in a press release.
Violent crime in Oakland was up by 21% in 2023 from 2022, while robbery rose by 38% and motor vehicle theft increased by 45%, prompting Gov. Gavin Newsom to deploy in February state prosecutors to assist Ms. Price’s office.
The first Black woman to serve as Alameda County DA, Ms. Price becomes the latest left-wing prosecutor to face early removal over concerns about rising crime and lenient enforcement policies.
In 2022, San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin was recalled after about two years in office. Mr. Boudin did not receive campaign contributions from Soros-funded PACs, but has links to other Soros-affiliated organizations, according to the LELDF.
Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascon, who has received $6 million in contributions from Soros-funded entities, was the target of a 2021-22 recall effort that failed to qualify for the ballot. He faced 11 opponents in Tuesday’s primary election.
A dozen Soros-backed prosecutors have left office in the past two years by losing their reelection bids or resigning before the end of their terms, often under political pressure. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has removed two prosecutors, saying they neglected their duty to enforce state law.
“Pamela Price has no business being a chief prosecutor, and if not for George Soros’ millions, she wouldn’t be,” LELDF President Jason Johnson said. “Even the generally progressive people of Alameda County are sick and tired of her dangerous policies and embarrassing antics. If the voters do recall her, she’ll join the ranks of more than a dozen Soros-linked prosecutors who left office defeated or disgraced (or both).”
• Valerie Richardson can be reached at vrichardson@washingtontimes.com.
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