LA prosecutors welcome new boss after Gascón defeat: “Crime is illegal again”

Incumbent Democratic Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón lost his re-election bid to former federal prosecutor Nathan Hochman, an independent candidate.

Rank-and-file prosecutors, whose union opposed Gascón's candidacy and is embroiled in court disputes with him, are hailing their new boss as a return to normalcy after a tumultuous four years that have seen a rise in violent crime, controversial directives from above, about two dozen whistleblowers- Retaliation lawsuits against the outgoing prosecutor.

Gascón's embattled tenure led him to survive two recall attempts, but he was unable to withstand the challenge of Hochman, a former U.S. deputy attorney general with decades of legal experience.

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“Crime is illegal again,” said Shea Sanna, an assistant district attorney who sued Gascón for alleged retaliation and handled one of the cases that marked one of Gascón’s most criticized missteps — the prosecution of convicted murderer and child molester James “Hannah.” Tubbs.

Gascón treated Tubbs like a juvenile when Tubbs was 26 and already serving time in an adult prison, where he has since returned after pleading guilty to killing a friend for more than $100.

After Sanna protested that Tubbs should be treated with leniency, he was demoted, mistreated and harassed, according to a retaliation lawsuit.

“We have a new prosecutor who will focus on fighting crime rather than fighting his own prosecutors,” Sanna told Fox News Digital. “Hochman’s focus will be on protecting law-abiding citizens, not murderers and rapists.”

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Assistant District Attorney Shea Sanna, right, at a hearing in Antelope Valley Juvenile Court in California on January 27, 2022. James “Hannah” Tubbs, top left, began identifying as a woman after learning he was being charged with molesting a When the girl was arrested in Los Angeles when he was 26, he was charged in juvenile court. He was sent to a men's prison for an unrelated murder. (Dave Buchan, LASD, Jason Armond/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

“It’s time for district attorneys to get back to doing the job they were elected to do – following and enforcing the laws, prosecuting crimes, supporting victims and doing the right thing regardless of their political affiliation,” said Jonathan Hatami, a deputy District Attorney, who had run for Gascón's job, failed in the primary race and supported Hochman.

“The defeat of Gascón, the real destruction, had absolutely nothing to do with politics,” he told Fox News Digital. “It had everything to do with his refusal to actually do the job of district attorney. For Angelenos, this was not a national issue. It was personal. We all deserve public safety – especially from our prosecutor.”

Gascon lost. His right-wing Alameda County district attorney, Pamela Price, was successfully removed. And California voters overwhelmingly passed Proposition 36, a criminal justice referendum that eliminated the unpopular soft-on-crime policies that Gascón and Price had supported in the previously passed Proposition 47.

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Voters on Tuesday rejected Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price and Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón after years of opposing what critics call left-wing, soft-on-crime policies. (Pamela Price/Instagram)

“After four years of being test subjects in a perverse social experiment, L.A. County residents have clearly learned the hard way that their vote for district attorney is more important than any other decision on their ballots,” said Jason Lustig, a another assistant district attorney suing Gascón for alleged retaliation.

“I am confident that Nathan Hochman will restore balance, fairness and organization to an institution to which I and hundreds of my colleagues have dedicated our professional lives.”

“Gascón’s social experiment is over. Voters overwhelmingly rejected George Gascón and his soft-on-crime policies.”

– Shea Sanna, Assistant District Attorney

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Hatami, Sanna and Lustig are among about two dozen Los Angeles prosecutors who have sued their outgoing boss in court, alleging retaliation and discrimination and that his chain of command may have given prosecutors unlawful instructions.

Gascón's own top advisers have found themselves in a different court – the criminal court – and not on the side that prosecutors usually take.

The state attorney general's office charged Gascón's No. 3, Diana Teran, with a felony for allegedly misusing confidential law enforcement information. His No. 2 lieutenant, Joseph Iniguez, appeared on bodycam video handcuffing himself after police stopped his fiancé on suspicion of drunken driving following a wedding in 2021.

Joseph Iniguez (left) and George Gascón speak at an event calling for prison reform on November 9, 2019 in Pasadena, California. (Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Patrisse Cullors)

“Gascón’s reign of terror over L.A. extended far beyond the prosecutors in his office,” said Tatiana Chahoian, another assistant district attorney with a retaliation claim. “The people of LA County not only kicked him out, they simultaneously passed Prop 36, which increased penalties for certain crimes. They’ve heard their voices loud and clear – they’ve had enough.”

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Although she welcomed the change in leadership, she said her case and those of others like it were still moving forward.

“He has permanently damaged careers, forced early retirements and ruined office morale and culture,” she told Fox News Digital. “The repairs will take a long time. Culture doesn’t change overnight.”

Los Angeles Assistant District Attorney Tatiana Chahoian found herself in trouble after revealing a memo about the county's prosecution of street racing and street takeovers in an interview with FOX 11 Los Angeles. (FOX 11 Los Angeles)

Hochman, a lifelong Los Angeles resident who previously served as president of the Los Angeles City Ethics Commission, accused Gascón of “catastrophic incompetence” in the campaign and vowed to restore order and common sense.

According to his campaign page, Gascón is a Cuban expat whose family fled communism in 1967. After dropping out of high school, he joined the Army and then the Los Angeles Police Department. He became police chief in Mesa, Arizona and in San Francisco.

He then succeeded Kamala Harris as district attorney of San Francisco when she became attorney general of California.

He served two terms there and developed his left-wing politics before winning the Los Angeles election in 2020. Critics have often noted that he never tried a case in court.

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“Gascón – your reign over LA is finally over,” Hatami said. “Please never run for public office again.”