Jackie Lacey Likely to Stand Up Her Challengers at District Attorney Forum in Pasadena Monday

Los Angeles District Attorney Jackie Lacey will most likely be a “no-show” at the District Attorney Candidate Forum Monday in Pasadena, an organizer said.

Although Lacey’s challengers, former San Francisco D.A. George Gascon and former federal public defender Rachel Rossi have accepted their invitation from the forum organizers, Lacey has not.

The forum is being hosted by the ACLU SoCal Pasadena/Foothills Chapter and the League of Women Voters-Pasadena Area, and the LA Progressive.

“No response from Lacey’s team to maybe a half dozen invitations from several of us. [She is] almost certain not to attend,” a note from LA Progressive’s Dick Price said Sunday.

The organizers, which also include the LA Coalition for DA Justice and Accountability and the League of Women Voters of Los Angeles County, said the Forum, free and open to the public, was organized to give Pasadena-area residents an opportunity to hear direct from the candidates for District Attorney who are seeking to get their votes in the March 3 primary election.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office is considered the nation’s largest local prosecutorial agency. Together with Los Angeles’ position as a capital of innovation and a breeding ground for political movements, the LA District Attorney’s caseload puts it in a position to influence justice policy not only throughout California but around the nation as well.

According to the Los Angeles Times, aside from the presidential race, “the most important item before voters in 2020 will be the race for L.A. County District Attorney.”

The Forum, from 6 to 9 p.m., is a nonpartisan event and the candidates have not been endorsed by the co-sponsors, the organizers said.

The Quaker Meeting House is located at 520 E. Orange Grove Blvd. In Pasadena.

For more information, contact Dick Price at dick_and_sharon@laprogressive.com.