107 Days

by Kamala Harris

I had known Reverend Sharpton for many years, working with him for criminal justice reform, praying with him at funerals for young Black men killed in police shootings. He was aware of my record as a prosecutor and how it had been mischaracterized. When I became a district attorney, this country was in an even worse place than it is now on criminal justice. I was one of the first elected progressive district attorneys, looking for ways to keep nonviolent offenders out of jail rather than put them in it. I didn’t seek jail time for simple marijuana offenses. My Back on Track initiative, connecting offenders with services and jobs, and also taking care of their mental health by doing things like hooking them up with counseling and gym memberships, worked so well it became a model for other jurisdictions. It is true that prosecution rates for violent crime increased on my watch. If you rape a woman, molest a child, or take a life, consequences should be serious and swift. I don’t apologize for that.