[264], In November 2019, Senator Harris called for an investigation into the death of Roxsana Hernández, a transgender woman and immigrant who died in ICE custody. "If he was not armed, the use of force that was seven bullets coming out of a gun at close range in the back of the man, I don't see how anybody could reason that that was justifiable.". ", "Kamala Harris-Steve Cooley race could affect Prop. Why has she been silent on this?” She was the top cop of California.
[169], Harris prioritized environmental protection as attorney general, first securing a $44 million settlement to resolve all damages and costs associated with the Cosco Busan oil spill, in which a container ship collided with San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge and spilled 50,000 gallons of bunker fuel into the San Francisco Bay. [26] [219][220][221][222], In February 2016, the California Democratic Party voted at its convention to endorse Harris, who received nearly eighty percent of the vote. Even Republicans Say So", "We Can No Longer Afford the Military-Industrial Complex", "Kamala Harris nabs national security, environment assignments in the U.S. Senate", "Schumer Announces Updated Senate Democratic Committee Memberships for the 115th Congress, 2nd Session", "Kamala Harris: young, black, female – and the Democrats' best bet for 2020?
[146] Harris declined to take any position on criminal sentencing-reform initiatives Prop 36 (2012) and Prop 47 (2014), arguing it would be improper because her office prepares the ballot booklets. [72], Harris also pushed for higher bail for criminal defendants involved in gun-related crimes, arguing that historically low bail encouraged outsiders to commit crimes in San Francisco. [79] The conviction was upheld on appeal.
[239] The prosecutorial nature of her questioning caused Senator John McCain, an ex officio member of the Intelligence Committee, and Senator Richard Burr, the committee chairman, to interrupt her and request that she be more respectful of the witness. [164] While Harris defended the state's position in court, she said she ultimately pushed the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to change their policy. The warrant alleged that 99 percent of Backpage's revenue was directly attributable to prostitution-related ads, many of which involved victims of sex trafficking, including children under the age of 18.
[195] The pimping charge against Ferrer was dismissed by the California courts in 2016 on the grounds of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, but in 2018 Ferrer pleaded guilty in California to money laundering and agreed to give evidence against the former co-owners of Backpage. [254] The bill, which died in the House, would have made lynching a federal hate crime. She began her career in the Alameda County District Attorney's Office, before being recruited to the San Francisco District Attorney's Office and later the City Attorney of San Francisco's office.
The election was held November 2 but after a protracted period of counting mail-in and provisional ballots, Cooley conceded on November 25. [43] Harris campaigned against the measure and Salomon opposed directing media inquiries about Prop 21 to Harris and reassigned her, a de facto demotion. Renne endorsed Harris during her DA campaign. [173], From 2015 to 2016, Harris secured multiple multi-million-dollar settlements with fuel service companies Chevron, BP, ARCO, Phillips 66, and ConocoPhillips to resolve allegations they failed to properly monitor the hazardous materials in its underground storage tanks used to store gasoline for retail sale at hundreds of California gas stations.