Unions representing Los Angeles County prosecutors and law enforcement officers are blasting District Attorney George Gascón’s hiring of controversial Deputy Public Defender Tiffiny Blacknell, a political supporter who has described police officers as “barbarians” and advocated abolishing prisons.
Blacknell’s appointment to an undisclosed executive position is an attempt by Gascón to fill his administration with those who share his progressive philosophies, claimed Eric Siddall, vice president of the Association of Deputy District Attorneys.
“Rather than playing by the hiring rule, Gascon is installing a political ally that will ensure his administration is an echo chamber,” Siddall said Thursday.
Blacknell did not immediately return a phone call seeking comment.
Alex Bastian, a special adviser to Gascón, said Blacknell will serve on the district attorney’s executive staff, but he did not provide details about her job description. “DA Gascón has the utmost confidence in his executive team and is looking forward to having Tiffiny Blacknell join the office,” he said in an email.
Blacknell has been categorized as a Grade 4 deputy district attorney, roughly the same categorization she had with the Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office, where she worked for more than 17 years. The salary for a Grade 4 attorney is $262,000 in annual salary and benefits, according to the Transparent California public database.
Siddall criticized Gascón’s decision to begin Blacknell at a pay grade that is one step below a management position. “There are plenty Grade 3 deputy district attorneys who are eligible for promotion and have the requisite experiences and skills,” he said. “Mr Gascon should have looked through that list first before hiring someone who doesn’t have the basic qualifications to be a Grade 4 prosecutor.”
‘Passionate’ about criminal justice reform
Blacknell served as a member of Gascón’s public policy committee in the run-up to his election victory last year over incumbent District Attorney Jackie Lacey.
“She is passionate about criminal justice reform and appears in panel discussions surrounding criminal justice issues,” according to Blacknell’s bio on Gascón campaign website.
However, it’s Blacknell’s strident anti-police rhetoric — frequently featured in her social media posts — that draws the sharpest rebuke from the Los Angeles Police Protective League.
‘Thumbing nose’ at crime victims
“Once again, Gascón is thumbing his nose at crime victims by hiring someone who wants to abolish prisons, defund public safety, and who has expressed outright hatred toward police officers, Craig Lally, the union’s president, said in a statement. “With murders and shootings at a 10-year high, do we really need criminal defense attorneys on both sides of the aisle?”
Siddell questioned whether Blacknell’s social media comments also reflect Gascón’s values. “I think the posts speak for themselves,” he said.
In one Instagram post, Blacknell is pictured wearing a T-shirt that reads, “The police are trained to kill us,” while in a Facebook post she describes how she participated in looting during the 1992 Los Angeles riots.
“I was 15,” she wrote in the post. “I was furious, sad and scared. I had no way to process my emotions about the murder of Latasha Harlins or the beating of Rodney King. So we went out and watched our city burn. And when the opportunity arose, we took some sh–. It was one of the most formative moments of my life. I remember it so clearly. I remember sitting on my cousin’s car and watching the fire on the first night with tears in my eyes.”
In another post, Blacknell advocates “flipping the bench” by voting out judges who do not agree with Gascón’s policies.
“Before George, these same judges were doing whatever the DA asked them to do,” she said in the post. “So the truth comes out. It’s just the mass human caging they believe in. It’s not about bowing to the will of the DA, it’s about perpetrating the racist system. Now that we know who’s who, it’s time to take action The people have been voting for measure after measure to reduce the jail prison population, they have voted for a progressive prosecutor who has promised to reduce mass human caging. The only thing standing in the way of the will of the people, is the bench.”
Civic engagement
Blacknell also is well-known for her civic engagement within Los Angeles County’s Black community. In 2019, she was the keynote speaker at the ”I Matter” girls empowerment conference at East Los Angeles College. The conference provides girls and young women ages 11-18 an opportunity to build confidence, further their education and live fulfilling lives.
The prosecutors union, which represents about 850 deputy district attorneys, has filed a civil suit challenging the legality of Gascón’s directives, including abolishing sentencing enhancements that can add years to a defendant’s prison term.
Aside from social media posts, Blacknell also has been involved in controversy in the courtroom. In 2020, she made headlines after it was revealed that, without notifying the prosecutor in the case or the victim’s family, she helped negotiate a “sweetheart deal” with a suspect in a gang murder. The deal ultimately was withdrawn.
“It’s unconscionable, but not surprising, that George Gascon would appoint someone as a top prosecutor who just a few months ago was involved in a secret deal to get her criminal defendant client a sweetheart deal on a murder charge,” Lally said.
