California mom targeted in hit-and-run torches Gascon for driver's light punishment
She calls the sentence 'very short of fair'
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The California mom mowed down by a hit-and-run driver while she was walking with her infant down a Venice side street in 2021 blamed the liberal policies of Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascon on Tuesday for failing to properly hold the driver accountable.
The driver, now 17, received a sentence of five to seven months in a juvenile probation camp, which authorities said is "less than a military school and a little bit tougher than a summer camp." Gascon’s office called the punishment "an appropriate resolution."
The victim, who has asked to be identified only by her first name Rachel, said in a blistering rebuttal that the charges "were very short of fair." On Tuesday, she told Tucker Carlson that she worries the light punishment will embolden criminals in the city.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Democratic Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascon claimed Monday that there is "misinformation circulating" regarding the light punishment of a teen who admitted to mowing down a mother and her infant. (Robyn Beck/AFP | Los Angeles County)
"It sends messages to criminals that it’s okay to do bad things, because we are not going to punish you, we will punish the victims instead," she said.
She continued, "I’m just beside myself with the comments that [Gascon] has come out with on Twitter citing that California law says that the punishment is fair, when in fact it is his policies that he put in a place that prevents us from getting appropriate justice."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Video shows the suspect speeding the wrong way down a one-way backstreet, veering into the woman and her 8-month-old son in a stroller at around 8:40 a.m. on Aug. 6, 2021. After plowing through them, he appeared to speed off, only to crash head-on into a pickup truck that blocked his path.
Rachel said she is certain the driver rammed into her and her baby "on purpose."
"I made eye contact with him as he was approaching us — I screamed for him to stop," she said.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Surveillance video recorded the entire Aug. 6, 2021 hit-and-run incident in Venice, California. (Los Angeles)
The suspect was on probation at the time of the incident for felony poisoning after he spiked a girl’s drink at a high school in 2019, Fox News’ Bill Melugin reported Sunday.
The self-declared Democrat said she voted for Gascon in 2020 because she supported his prison reform efforts. Now, she is considering moving out of the city because of the policies he put in place.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"I would like to admit that I am a Democrat and I voted for George Gascon," she said. "I voted for this guy because I believed that our prisons do need some reform, but rewarding criminals, violent criminals for their actions, is very far from any kind of reformation that anybody would think is appropriate."
"We have plans to move," Rachel said, telling Carlson she plans to relocate her family over the incident.
Gascon’s office has come under fire for months for what critics call a soft approach to prosecuting crime and policies that protect criminals while double injuring their victims. He has maintained that his reforms are aimed at creating a fairer criminal justice system.
Fox News' Michael Ruiz contributed to this report.