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A Los Angeles prosecutor is blasting Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascon after two police officers were killed on Tuesday night by a gang member who was on probation for a weapons charge after he received a lenient sentence through a plea deal.
Justin William Flores allegedly killed two El Monte, California police officers on Tuesday night. He had a previous strike conviction and also received two years of probation for being a felon in possession of a firearm. The sentence is aligned with the policies of Gascon, who has been taken to court over his refusal to prosecute three-strike cases.
The Gascon policy allowed Flores to plead no contest and then get a light sentence handed down, despite a strike being on his criminal record.
Los Angeles Deputy District Attorney Jon Hatami said on Twitter that Gascon is promoting a culture of “no accountability & no public safety.”
Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon speaks at a press conference, December 8, 2021 in Los Angeles.
(Photo by Robyn Beck / AFP)
“George Gascón says he cares about gun violence. Actions speak louder than words! He refuses to fully charge & prosecute existing gun cases. Felon in poss of a firearm with a prior strike-no prison, no accountability & no public safety,” Hatami said.
Hatami is part of a movement to get Gascon recalled. The Recall George Gascon campaign recently announced it has collected the necessary number of signatures to put Gascon’s recall on the ballot.
He also hit Gascon for supposedly not caring about “prior violent criminal history.”
Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon speaks at a press conference, December 8, 2021 in Los Angeles, California.
(Photo by Robyn Beck / AFP)
Sources within the district attorney’s office told Fox News that Flores would have likely been handed a sentence of up to three years in prison if he was prosecuted in February 2021.
Gascon’s office told Fox News that Flores didn’t have a “documented history of violence” when he was sentenced.
“The sentence he received in the firearm case was consistent with case resolutions for this type of offense given his criminal history and the nature of the offense,” the statement says. “At the time the court sentenced him, Mr. Flores did not have a documented history of violence.”
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This photo provided by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation shows Justin William Flores who is the alleged gunman in a Southern California shootout that killed two police officers on Tuesday, June 14, 2022 in El Monte, Calif. Flores was identified as the suspect by the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office on Wednesday, June 15, 2022.
(California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation via AP)
The El Monte police officers, Cpl. Michael Paredes and Officer Joseph Santana, were killed on Tuesday while responding to reports of a stabbing at a local motel. When approaching the suspect, a shootout took place and both officers were shot.
Officials said that the officers later died in a Los Angeles hospital.
Fox News’ Louis Casiano and Bill Melugin contributed to this report
