Far-left district attorney Pamela Price gave a California teen linked to three murders just seven years in prison.
Alameda County Sheriff's Office on Friday urged Price to charge Sergio Morales-Jacquez, now 18, as an adult because of his "extensive and violent criminal history in multiple jurisdictions." Price—who was elected in November as an "unapologetic progressive" who promised to "upend" the county's prosecutorial conventions—declined the petition, sending Morales-Jacquez to the Juvenile Justice Center for seven years with the possibility of probation.
At age 17, Morales-Jacquez fatally shot 30-year-old newlywed Rienhart Asuncion after a road-rage altercation. Less than two weeks later, Morales-Jazquez and two other teens opened fire at a party in Oakland, linking him to the killing of two teenage brothers, Angel and Jazy Sotelo Garcia. He is also "a person of interest" in a homicide case authorities are still investigating, the Berkeley Scanner reported.
During her campaign, Price, who took hundreds of thousands of dollars from progressive billionaire George Soros, promised to "stop over-criminalizing our youth."
Former prosecutors and Price's own office question her more lenient approach.
"Seven years for three murder cases?" a former local prosecutor told the New York Post. "That is telling these kids that they are in control. Nothing—and I mean nothing—is a big deal anymore."
"Forget 16 and 17," the attorney continued. "We’re seeing kids getting into gang life at 10 now. Violent felony cases for kids under 15 are not a rare occurrence anymore. That’s why this approach is going to be a major, major problem."
Several of Price's prosecutors have resigned due to her radical reform policies, according to the Post.
"Victims deserve better," veteran Alameda County prosecutor Danielle Hilton said, adding that Price’s radical agenda is not providing justice to those "devastated by violent crime."