NPR

Newly Elected DAs Vow To Continue Reforms, End Policies Deemed Unfair

Reform-minded prosecutors who want to change the criminal justice system from the inside won big in November. It's momentum for a small, but growing movement.

This month's elections, especially in the aftermath of this summer's protests against racial injustice, were seen as a test for criminal justice reforms. This was especially true for so-called progressive district attorneys.

Many policies in the higher-profile cities of Philadelphia, San Francisco and Chicago already had drawn the ire of some in law enforcement, including choosing not to prosecute certain low-level crimes, among other changes.

Those policies appear to be just fine with voters in cities with prosecutors who vowed to continue shaking things up.

A prime example is in Chicago, where Cook County State's. The office is the second-largest in the country, (behind Los Angeles county) with more than 700 attorneys.

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