Today we’d like to introduce you to Deborah Gonzalez.
Deborah, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
The relevant part of my story begins on Nov ember 9, 2016 the day after the presidential election. The result hit me hard as I read a text from my daughter that morning – “Mom I’m scared.” It felt as if everything I had told my daughters as they grew up was a lie – that the America that I knew no longer existed and in its stead was a racist, white supremist patriarchy. As I wrestled with the depression a friend invited me to a retreat of the local Democratic Party. While there, it seemed they were all talking about needing to replace the current state legislator, but no one would commit to run. I remembered my father’s words “if something needs to be done and you are the only one who can do it, you have a duty to step up.” When I got home, my husband asked how did the meeting go? I told him I was running for office and without missing a beat, he said “whatever you need.”
I won that special election. The first time a Democrat had run for that state seat in over seven years since it had been so gerrymandered. I served for a year and a half. During that time, I was appointed to the judiciary non-civil committee – this is where all the criminal laws and issues were handled. I started working with various groups like NAACP, the Southern Center for Human Rights, Southern Poverty Law Center, ACLU, etc. The next year although I lost my re-election, I knew what I had to do next.
There was an area that had been neglected in our local elections, the judiciary. No one really knew what they did or seemed to care, but the more I researched that, the more I saw the potential of being able to bring true justice to my community. I discovered three things: 1) my circuit had had only 2 DAs in the last 48 years; 2) there was a progressive prosecutor movement that was gaining momentum; and 3) if someone didn’t change things the status quo of oppressing black, brown, and poor people would continue indefinitely. I entered the race.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Entering the race was the easy thing. The road did not only have bumps but sinkholes. The current DA resigned suddenly a week before qualifications for the primary race. The Governor refused to appoint and triggered a law (which I had voted against in 2018) that would cancel the election and let his next appointee have two and a half years without needing to face the people. I got a legal team together and sued. Five victories later (all the way up to the GA Supreme Court), several ballot errors against me, and a run-off, I won. The People’s DA had been elected with a mandate – reform the criminal justice system and that was exactly what I intended to do.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am the District Attorney. I represent the State in prosecuting individuals for violating criminal laws. I do that by deciding who to prosecute, what to charge them with, and have a great influence on what sentence they ultimately serve. I am a progressive prosecutor – which means I understand my power and have committed to use it to address the injustices of the criminal legal system – to reduce mass incarceration, reduce the harm to the community because of the prison industrial complex, to hold people accountable for what they have done through restorative measures and diversion programs, to assist in the healing of my community by every single decision I make. I am proud of the team I am building and the reforms that I am implementing. I am proud of sticking to what is right, not what is easy. I am proud of being the first Latina DA in the state of GA, the first minority Latina and female DA in my circuit, and the first Puerto Rican female DA in the country. I am proud of showing that representation matters and letting other young girls see that anything is possible for them.
What’s next?
My inaugural speech ended with my campaign tag line becoming my direction point for my first year in office – “Justice was on the ballot. It is now on the agenda.” I issued a Day One Memo outlining over 40 policy changes and presumptions for my office. That memo has now traveled all over the country to law schools and prosecutor offices, as well as public defender offices and criminal reform organizations. This first year has been eventful – I entered a DA office with unprecedented challenges including a backlog of cases due to court closings and a pandemic still in full swing. Transition is never easy but turn-over allowed me to bring in team members who believed as I did – our prosecutorial discretionary power should be used to restore our community – to hold people accountable humanely and with wisdom, understanding that we – victims, defendants, the public – all form part of one same community.
As I look forward to my second year, I see my promise for more transparency via a data dashboard coming to fruition, a juvenile restorative justice program being implemented, and an emerging adult diversion program taking shape. I see a DA office in partnership with its community via working groups and collaborations. I see a team of 40+ people developing themselves professionally and in service to others. I see justice being done.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://westerncircuitda.com/
- Facebook: @WesternCircuitDA
- Twitter: @DG4DA
Image Credits:
Personal photo: Kai Brown 40 Watt/Necessary Trouble: Deborah Gonzalez IDs: Deborah Gonzalez Nevertheless, She Persisted: Bob Scott Podium: Andrea Wellnitz
