OAKLAND, CA – Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price Monday conceded her election loss, noting “she was unable to defeat a historic recall that targeted her reforms of the criminal justice system” and “will step down next month,” according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
The Chronicle reported Price said, “The voters have spoken,” at a news conference, adding, “and while the outcome is not what we hoped for, I respect their decision.”
Friday polls, according to the Chronicle, “showed 63 percent of voters supported the recall and 37 percent opposed it, marking the first time voters ousted a district attorney in the county’s history.”
Price’s election two years ago, she said, was a “‘huge step forward toward a better criminal legal system. Since taking office in January 2023, I fought to bring change to a broken system,’ she said at Fluid 510 lounge in downtown Oakland, flanked by 20 supporters,” according to the Chronicle.
The Chronicle states, “Price is expected to remain in office until the election results are certified, no later than Dec. 5. Chief Assistant District Attorney Royl Roberts, whom she hired, will take over until the county Board of Supervisors appoints a successor.”
San Francisco Chronicle wrote how despite being “a former civil rights attorney, Price was elected in 2022 with 53 percent of the vote on a platform that aligned with a broader reform-minded criminal justice movement across the country: She promised to seek shorter sentences, promote rehabilitation and prosecute police misconduct.”
SF Chronicle added “the county’s first Black district attorney, Price said the reforms were necessary to address root causes of crime and racial bias in the criminal justice system,” adding critics bashed her approach, saying she “was too lenient, fueled crime and prioritized reform over victims’ calls for justice and accountability” and “faced scrutiny over several issues, including missed deadlines to file charges in about 1,000 misdemeanor cases.”
SF Chronicle reported, in her concession speech, “Price touted her administration’s efforts to boost services for crime victims, secure grants, expose prosecutorial misconduct under previous administrations and hold businesses accountable for fraud.”
“She referenced a case in which a towing company was ordered to pay $500,000 in restitution for victims whose vehicles were towed illegally. She also touted charges her office filed in high-profile cases, including the fatal shooting of Oakland police officer Tuan Le and the fatal freeway shooting of toddler Jasper Wu.”
Jean Moses, a member of the Oakland-based Interfaith “The Coalition for Justice in Our Jails,” was one of three supporters who praised Price’s work.
Moses said, Chron reported, it is important for Price’s successor to carry on with cases Price filed, including the case against deputies and medical staff in the Santa Rita Jail death of Maurice Monk.
“Price said she feels confident that the office will be ‘in good hands’ with Roberts at the helm until county supervisors appoint a successor” and “the supervisors’ pick will serve until 2026, when voters will elect a replacement to serve the rest of the term, which ends in 2028,” the Chronicle reported.
