Yes, weak sentences for violent criminals make crime worse
Zachary Faria
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The delusion that is used to justify soft-on-crime policies from liberal prosecutors is that district attorneys do not affect crime. It is an absurd notion that does not hold up to the slightest scrutiny.
Pamela Price was the most recent person to trot out this line, using it to defend her own abysmal performance as Alameda County’s district attorney. In responding to criticisms over crime in Oakland, California, Price said that “some people are not able to actually appreciate the work that we do” and that “the DA’s role has really no impact on crime.”
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Let’s ignore for a second that violent crime and robberies in Oakland have increased under Price’s brief tenure as district attorney so far, including North Oakland’s 18% increase in violent crime and 22% increase in robberies. Consider this question: If you were to allow people to commit robberies and never punish them, do you think you would get more robberies or the same amount than if you had put them in jail?
Or this one: If you help a gang member avoid prison after committing a shooting and he goes on to commit another shooting, would your decision to go soft on him have “no impact on crime”? If you had put him in jail for a lengthy period of time, would he then be able to commit another shooting while he was sitting in jail?
Logically, everyone understands that putting unrepentant repeat criminals back out on the streets means they will commit more crimes that would not be committed if they were put in jail. Practically, we can see this in play in Oakland, where eight teenagers have been repeatedly set free while committing 35 robberies and counting. Price has sought to ensure that gang members who took part in a shootout that killed a toddler just before his second birthday would receive no jail time. Do you think that such a decision would have “no impact on crime?”
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We have seen similar problems in cities that have embraced Price’s views. The Los Angeles Times made similar claims that district attorneys don’t control crime in defense of Los Angeles County’s District Attorney George Gascon. There is a clear path from Gascon giving criminals light sentences to murders, including his decision to go soft on a man who attempted to slay someone by putting him in a two-year mental health program. He killed someone two and a half years after his initial attempt. Gascon also got police officers killed by going soft on a repeat criminal and gang member.
When you refuse to prosecute criminals, you embolden them to commit crimes more frequently and to become more and more violent. Everyone understands this except for Price and her ilk, who want you to think that keeping violent criminals in jail would not make people any safer than letting them walk free among civilians. It is delusional, and yet, it is the idea that sits at the very core of criminal justice reform.