A teenage girl was nearly kidnapped at gunpoint in broad daylight near an elementary school in South Los Angeles on Tuesday.
A man tried to kidnap a 15-year-old girl, but she performed an incredible act of bravery by fighting off her attacker and managing to escape.
The girl was outside Figueroa Street Elementary School around 3:30 p.m. when the man suddenly approached her and put his hand around her neck.
She was only able to free herself after hitting the man with her cell phone and running away across the street.
A teenage girl was nearly kidnapped at gunpoint in broad daylight near a school in South Los Angeles.
The girl was outside Figueroa Street Elementary School around 3:30 p.m. when the man suddenly approached her and put his hand around her neck.
The teenager and her mother wish to remain anonymous following the attack.
The attempted kidnapping was captured by a surveillance camera at a nearby store.
The chilling images were shared with the Los Angeles Police Department, who made them public in hopes of catching the armed suspect.
“I hope the police start paying more attention to the community,” said local store owner Foxy Chavez. ABC7.
Neither the teenager nor her mother wanted to be identified, but both are grateful that she was able to defend herself and fight off her attacker.
Police say they are treating the incident as an attempted kidnapping.
Local store owner Foxy Chavez, pictured, said police need to start paying more attention to the community.
The teenager can be seen running down the street to get away from her attacker.
The teenager said she was able to escape after hitting her attacker with her cell phone.
These opportunistic crimes have become increasingly common due to lax bail reform policies under progressive District Attorney George Gascón.
DA Gascón is a progressive prosecutor who has expressed his belief that the criminal justice system should focus more on intervention and rehabilitation, criticizing “tough on crime” policies as racist and a failure.
Gascón is running for re-election in November against opponent Nathan Hochman, a former federal prosecutor who has sought to capitalize on growing anger over crime and homelessness.
In his campaign ads, Hochman, a defense attorney, has promised to change the direction of the district attorney’s office, saying, “It’s time we had a prosecutor who fights for victims, not criminals.”
Gascón was elected in 2020 on a platform of criminal justice reform, following the police killing of George Floyd. He faced a recall attempt in his first 100 days in office and a second attempt later, but neither made it to the polls.
Opportunistic crime appears increasingly common under the progressive policies of District Attorney George Gascón, pictured, who is up for re-election in November and could well be ousted.
During his first term, Gascón immediately laid out his campaign agenda: do not seek the death penalty; do not prosecute juveniles as adults; end cash bail for misdemeanors and nonviolent felonies; and do not introduce any further increases that would trigger harsher sentences for certain elements of crime, recidivism or gang membership.
He was forced to reverse some of his biggest reforms early in his term, such as initially ordering the removal of more than 100 improvements and elevating a hate crime from a misdemeanor to a felony.
The move angered victims’ advocates, and Gascón reversed course and reinstated enhancements in cases involving children, the elderly and people targeted because of their race, ethnicity, sexual orientation or disability.
His rivals have pledged to reverse many or most of his more progressive policies, such as his earlier orders to eliminate the filing of requests for sentence increases.
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