San Francisco’s new DA says she can ‘restore order’ while pressing reform. Critics aren’t so sure
After a tumultuous and expensive recall effort that ousted Chesa Boudin last month, San Francisco has a new district attorney — a prosecutor who quit Boudin’s office to join the campaign against him.
Mayor London Breed named Brooke Jenkins to the interim post Thursday, drawing praise from San Francisco Police Chief Bill Scott and the police union.
Boudin’s supporters, however, have been pushing back, questioning Jenkins’ experience and record on criminal justice reform in a city famous for its historically progressive politics but where public concerns about crime have drawn a more typical law-and-order response from officials.
“Unfortunately, as we all know, we are at a tipping point in San Francisco,” Jenkins said during a news conference Thursday night after Breed’s announcement. “San Franciscans do not feel safe, and concerns surrounding public safety have become their No. 1 concern.”
The recall that ousted Boudin in the middle of his first term became a referendum on some
