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> the DA would refuse to prosecute Yet the stats tell a different story as prosecution rates don't back that up. So what actually happened is that the cops ag

• lazide 4y ago
  Nope. A lot of high profile incidents with explicit statements from the DA disagree. A friend of mine recently (lives in SF) had a mentally ill, homeless man try to set his dog on fire. Literally took out a lighter and tried to light him on fire while they were standing at a bus stop. When called, the police did the right procedural things, but noted that since the animal had not been killed, it was unlikely any charges would likely be persued by the DA. They offered to call animal control however if he wanted, which they did. The animal control officer related a recent situation where a mentally ill homeless man had picked up a small dog being walked by it’s owner, and had smashed it into a wall repeatedly. The dog needed to be euthanized. The DAs office declined to prosecute. Theft and property damage has skyrocketed in SF recently as well. So that prosecutions stay flat doesn’t tell the proper story. The DA in SF has always in recent memory been this way - it isn’t JUST Chesea, but boy does he seem to be a good example.
  • shkkmo 4y ago
    I'm not trying to defend the prosecution policies. I don't know what evidence the DA was presented with in those cases or how winnable they might be. I do think it is reasonable to place some of the responsibility for rising property crime rates on the DA. That said, don't give the police a pass here. They have been actively hostile to the DA and spent a lot of money opposing this election. Their attempts to pass the buck to the DA for their failure to make arrests is a talking point that is part of their opposition to the DA. While the DA shares some blame for the rising property crime rates, the police share some blame for the lowered prosecution and conviction rates since the DA is dependent on the police to bring them strong, winnable cases. In reality, I think that both the DA and the police should be held to account for letting politics interfere with their ability to work together to solve issues that are their joint responsibility and require cooperation. Unfortunately, it is harder to hold the police accountable than the DA. > When called, the police did the right procedural things, but noted that since the animal had not been killed, it was unlikely any charges would likely be persued by the DA. Did they arrest the attacker, gather sufficient evidence and refer the case to a prosecutor? Or did they assume the case wouldn't be prosecuted because that assumption made their job easier?
    • lazide 4y ago
      They didn’t bother wasting their time because the DA had made it clear in prior worse cases (with witnesses, including security camera footage) that they wouldn’t prosecute that class of crime.
      • shkkmo 4y ago
        > They didn’t bother wasting their time because the DA had made it clear in prior worse cases (with witnesses, including security camera footage) that they wouldn’t prosecute that class of crime. So instead of doing their job, they tried to do the DA's job instead. If they had still made the effort, but warned you it was likely to go nowhere, that would be entirely reasonable. They had justification to arrest the individual and try to get them connected with mental health services even if the DA declined to prosecute. Instead, the police showed up and blamed someone else for why they wouldn't do their jobs. None of this is to defend the choices the DA made about prosecution, but those choices don't absolve the police of the responsibility to do their jobs.
        • lazide 4y ago