Hello, my name is Rachel Rossi and I am a public defender. I am also running to be the next Los Angeles County district attorney.

For too long in Los Angeles County we have settled for an archaic vision of justice. Rewarding convictions. Celebrating years of incarceration. Ignoring disparities of those entering the criminal justice system.

Los Angeles accounts for almost a third of the state’s prison population amounting to 130,000 people behind bars.

There are 2,850 jail jurisdictions in the United States and the Los Angeles County jail system is the largest of them all.

We annually spend almost 800 million dollars on housing people just in Los Angeles County jails-a jail system that is routinely at 120 to 180 percent capacity. But only 33 percent of people in our jails are accused of violent or serious charges, and one in three people suffer from mental illness.

It’s time for a change.

I believe in a new vision of criminal justice. A smarter and more equitable vision. A prosecutor who celebrates increased rates of safety. one who rewards outcomes of rehabilitation, restoration, and the rebuilding of communities. One who uses data-driven modern methods of justice to focus taxpayer dollars on preventing crime, not wasting resources on policies that don’t work.

I’m here to say that if we want a new vision of justice, we need a new district attorney and I’m that person.

Why me?

I was a public defender in l-a county courts and a federal public defender.

I fought for the people of Los Angeles against a broken criminal justice system.

All too often I stood beside people suffering from mental illness or substance use disorders, people who were pushed through a system not designed to treat or help them.

I watched our criminal justice system ineptly function as a behavioral health management system.

I then went to Washington D.C. and worked to change some of the laws that created this system.

I worked on criminal justice reforms nationally and to benefit states like California.

in Washington, I was able to take a step away from the courtroom and the practices that have become accepted and the status quo in Los Angeles.

I was able to research innovative policies taking place across the country.

I was able to think bigger – and envision a Los Angeles that no longer lags behind but leads the nation in safety while drastically lowering its incarceration rates.

Fighting the law only affected one small part of the system. Changing the law only affected another small part of the system. Los Angeles needs a prosecutor that vigorously advocates for reform if we truly want to see a safer and more humane county.

If I am elected as the next district attorney of Los Angeles County I will:

1. End the ineffective and costly revolving door of our homeless neighbors through jails, and advocate for smarter and focused use of resources on community services that prevent homelessness.
2. Pursue equal justice under the law for all. Justice should not depend on status, wealth, or a profession.
3. Revise prosecutorial policies to ensure they are gender-informed. Women are the fastest-growing segment of the incarcerated population and they have long been ignored in the criminal justice reform conversation which is why I launched my campaign outside of our women’s jail.
4. Listen to victims, believe survivors and expand access to restorative justice, to make victims whole and repair communities.
5. Protect the presumption of innocence by supporting the end of cash bail and drafting a pretrial release policy that seeks detention only for those who pose a threat to the community.
6. Empower independent prosecutors to ensure unbiased justice.
7. Support criminal justice reform efforts to decriminalize mental health and substance use disorders, and to focus resources on community-based treatment.
8. Work with law enforcement to prohibit ice enforcement in county courthouses and at probation offices and to protect immigrants who serve as witnesses and report crimes.
9. Develop policies to end racial disparities in charging and sentencing. black people are 8% of this county’s population but 29% of all jail admissions.
10. Ensure that juvenile policies focus on rehabilitation and expanding access to creative restorative justice solutions to end the school to prison pipeline.

And just as important, if elected I will not be afraid to meet with the community-the people who elected me and I will be open to course correction where needed as we move together towards a progressive prosecutor’s office.

I believe Los Angeles can lead the nation in safety, humanity, and equality under the law for both victims and defendants.

Los Angeles deserves a prosecutor that listens to, fights for, and stands with the people and i am that person.

Together, let’s imagine a new vision for Los Angeles where:

• We fight homelessness and not the homeless
• We no longer lead the country in incarceration rates
• We are safer
• We listen to, support and make whole all victims of crime
• We treat and heal those suffering from substance abuse and mental illness
• We provide justice to all equally
• and we criminalize crime-not poverty.

Change starts now. Join me.