Black Lives Matter Protestors Want LA County's First Black DA Ousted

The Black Lives Matter movement renewed its long-running feud with Los Angeles County district attorney (DA) Jakie Lacey, an African-American, even as she tries to hold onto her job in a runoff election in November.

Lacey, who was elected as the DA in 2012, ran on a law and order platform. She was the first African-American to become the county's DA and also the first woman. The African-American community had hopes she'd be on their side.

Despite hundreds of Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officers killing civilians during her term in office, Lacey has refused to prosecute a single one of those charged with the killings. Her staunch defense of LAPD has angered people supporting the Black Lives Matter movement and the African-American community at large. Lacey has been harshly and constantly criticized by the Black Lives Matter movement, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and others for steadfastly refusing to prosecute a single member of LAPD for murder despite clear evidence of cop guilt. Lacey has also resisted efforts to drastically reduce prison populations.

Her widespread unpopularity is now seeing thousands of demonstrators outside the LA Hall of Justice calling for her resignation or ouster.

"We've tried everything with her," said Melina Abdullah, co-founder of the Los Angeles chapter of Black Lives Matter. "We had a deep desire to have things be different."

Lacey's critics are campaigning against her in the coming runoff election. She's up against reformist George Gascón, a former San Francisco District Attorney and LAPD commander, who helped reshape the department after the Rampart corruption scandal of the late 1990s.

Predictably, cops and the law enforcement community including the Los Angeles Police Protective League, the LAPD union, support her candidacy.

"Jackie Lacey is the only candidate we feel that will keep Los Angeles County safe while successfully being able to implement meaningful reform in the court system," said LAPPL spokesman Dustin DeRollo. "We have serious concerns about her opponent."

On the other hand, Lacey has received loud criticism about her unconcern for the victims of cop killings and police brutality.

"That's the general approach to victims of police violence," said Abdullah. "When you're killed by police, you're not considered a victim."

Abdullah said the Black Lives movement and other human rights groups have tried to engage with Lacey in friendly ways for two years sans progress.

"We thought we could move forward, but the murders kept piling up," said Abdullah.

LAPD cops have killed more than 880 people since 2000, according to a Los Angeles Times report on officer-involved killings throughout the county. In almost every case, Lacey found a police-involved shooting justified or decided not to bring charges.

"Just on the assumption that she's Black and she's a woman, I assumed that she'd care about issues that impact our community the most," said Los Angeles resident LaTangia Oliver. "It's about just the charges —- not saying you'll be successful, but just bring up the charges."