Congressman Adam Schiff Drops Endorsement Of LA County District Attorney Jackie Lacey
BURBANK (CBSLA) -- Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff of Burbank announced on Saturday that he no longer endorses Los Angeles County District Attorney Jackie Lacey in her bid for a third term this November.
Schiff said in a tweet, "This is a rare time in our nation's history. We have a responsibility to make profound changes to end systemic racism and reform criminal justice."
He continued, "(43rd District California Assemblymember) Laura Friedman and I no longer feel our endorsement of Jackie Lacey a year ago has the same meaning. We have decided to withdraw it."
This is a rare time in our nation's history. We have a responsibility to make profound changes to end systemic racism & reform criminal justice.@LauraFriedman43 and I no longer feel our endorsement of Jackie Lacey a year ago has the same meaning. We have decided to withdraw it.
— Adam Schiff (@AdamSchiff) June 20, 2020
The announcement comes after weeks of protests outside the L.A. Hall of Justice, which serves as Lacey's office.
RELATED: Thousands Protest District Attorney Jackie Lacey In Downtown LA
Activists have targeted Lacey, who is an African American woman, for not prosecuting more police officers for misconduct.
Lacey has touted her record of "taking tough cases to trial," encouraged peaceful protests and called for more training of police officers across the board.
"As an African American woman, I'm always seeking justice," Lacey said. "But oftentimes, I look at the facts of the case and they are not prosecutable because maybe the person has a weapon or a gun or they shot someone or they knifed someone."
Lacey responded to Schiff's announcement on Sunday, saying in a statement, "As the first African American woman to hold the L.A. County D.A.'s office, I am proud of my record of taking on systemic racism and reforming criminal justice - from bail reform to reducing juvenile cases by nearly 50% to increasing our office's focus on mental health treatment instead of incarceration. I am confident that these achievements will be endorsed by the voters when placed next to my opponent's disastrous record as San Francisco D.A."
Lacey is currently running for a third term as D.A. and is up for reelection in a November runoff against former San Francisco D.A. George Gascón, a former LAPD officer.
She said she has no plans to resign despite calls for her to step down.
This story has been updated.