A California sheriff has blasted the state’s Governor Gavin Newsom’s plan to reform a law which has been blamed for an increase in crime.
California’s Proposition 47 reduced the penalties criminals face for various drug and theft offenses, turning some simple drug possession offenses into misdemeanors, together with some non-violent property crimes.
It has been blamed for California’s rampant theft problems, but a measure, to be voted on during November’s ballot is now looking to amend Prop 47.
But Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, a supporter of Donald Trump, is claiming Democratic legislators are devising a plan to mislead voters into rejecting the reforms by presenting alternative crime legislation.
Sheriff Bianco, a well-known conservative, has described the plan to derail the reforms as both ‘ingenious’ and ‘immoral’ to ‘sabotage’ it for ideological reasons.
California sheriff Chad Bianco has blasted the state’s Governor Gavin Newsom’s plan to reform California’s Proposition 47, which has been blamed for an increase in crime
Several officials in law enforcement officials blamed Prop 47 for the uptick in theft and smash-and-grabs that have plagued California in the years following the COVID-19 pandemic
‘Prop 47 is the main contributor to many of the public safety woes that we have in California, from homelessness to drug addiction to theft, and the overall majority, almost 80 percent of Californians, wants proposition 47 repealed or major reforms, and everyone is aware of that except for our governor and a handful of politicians in California who have got behind Prop 47,’ Bianco said to Fox News.
Governor Gavin Newsom, a defender of Prop 47 has said he will only negotiate if the measure is delayed until 2026.
Bianco is warning that significant efforts will be needed to combat misinformation and political maneuvers aimed at derailing the reform initiative.
Following the approval of the measure to reform Prop 47, Democrats in the state legislature have now began discussing new crime legislation, which Bianco argues designed to undermine the reform efforts, by presenting it as unnecessary.
‘The Democratic leadership, particularly our governor, had to come up with a plan of how to sabotage this,’ Bianco said.
‘It’s going to be important for Californians to know that they’re being fooled again, or at least the government, our California state government, is trying to fool them again the same way they did originally with Prop 47 by calling it the Safe Schools and Safe Streets Initiative, which it did completely the opposite.
Bianco, a well-known conservative, has blasted the proposals to reform Prop 47 as ‘unethical’ and ‘immoral’
Democratic governor Gavin Newsom signaled he opposes changes to Prop 47, which lowered narcotics possession and other crimes from felonies to misdemeanors
‘They have come up with a plan all of a sudden in an election year to have their own set of public safety bills that they say is going to fix the issues that we have with theft and with drug use and all those things,’ Bianco continued.
Bianco noted that some law enforcement groups are supporting the Democrat proposal, but he believes this support is superficial and misleading.
‘I need everyone to be fully aware. It is completely disingenuous. It is not true. They are misrepresenting factual law, and they are trying to fool the voters once again.’
Prop 47 made several crimes, including shoplifting, grand theft and receiving stolen property, a misdemeanor instead of a felony if the value of the property did not exceed $950.
It also lowered the penalty for the personal use of most illegal drugs below a certain weight.
Several officials in law enforcement officials blamed the measure for the uptick in theft and smash-and-grabs that have plagued California in the years following the COVID-19 pandemic.
It was around the same time that California became synonymous with smash-and-grab crimes as videos of groups of thieves brazenly ransacking stores gained traction online.
California Democrats do not support the reform of Prop 47 and are looking instead to pass public safety bills through the state capital that would attempt to address organized retail theft, car break-ins and other crimes.
But Sheriff Bianco has blasted the proposals as ‘unethical’ and ‘immoral’.
The November measure, named the Homelessness, Drug Addiction, and Theft Reduction Act, has bipartisan support, including from San Francisco Mayor London Breed. It is unclear if Governor Gavin Newsom, a strong advocate of Prop 47, will support the competing legislation.
‘What they are doing is they’re making it an emergency, so they’re going to get immediate authorization to implement these rules, and then they will use our fraudulent attorney general to create a narrative for the voter guide that says if you support this proposition in the November ballot, it will repeal this,’ Sheriff Bianco continued.
‘And then they’re going to vote ‘no’ on the Prop 47 fix. It is unethical. It is immoral, and this is exactly what Californians are sick of,’ Bianco continued.
‘From our governor, from our attorney general and from our legislature, we have activists, we have pro-criminal activists that are running our state government, and they are continuously lying to the general public, and we are all tired of it. We’re sick of it.’
Newsom’s office has said that that they will not negotiate on legislation unless supporters of the Prop 47 agree to push it back to 2026 when his term will end.
‘I’m the only guy who has reformed Prop 47,’ Newsom said earlier this year. ‘I think it’s important to level-set with people. Not to say everything about Prop 47 is perfect, we want to fix some of the ambiguities, but we can do it without reforming or going back to the voters themselves.’