News Releases
March 4, 2021: District Attorney George Gascón Issues Statement on Survey of Crime Victims in Los Angeles County
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Today, District Attorney George Gascón released the following statement in response to a poll of victims of violent crime in Los Angeles County showing large majorities support policies to shift resources away from incarceration and move toward prevention and rehabilitation.
“This poll of LA survivors confirms what similar national surveys have shown: The vast majority of victims are seeking healing, restoration and rehabilitation rather than retribution,” District Attorney Gascón said. “It is exploitative and disingenuous for proponents of the policies of mass incarceration to justify the expense, troubling racial disparities and non-existent safety benefit in the name of a survivor community that overwhelmingly does not agree with them.
What is most illuminating from this poll is how much we must do to advance the needs of victims. In response to the troubling findings of this survey, namely how few received help in spite of how many wish they had access to support, we will be working to bolster the services provided by my office as quickly as possible. We can and must do better to support victims on their journey to survivor.”
The survey can be found here:
