Democrat Pete Hardin has announced record fundraising for his campaign to be Orange County’s next District Attorney while current DA Todd Spitzer calls for Hardin to drop out over alleged behavior Todd ignored when his best friend worked for the OCDA’s office. The Washington Examiner isn’t exactly the Washington Post, so why they would care about an Orange County local election story is a head scratcher.
Maybe Todd could try The Epoch Times next.
Here are both announcements:
PETE HARDIN SHATTERS ORANGE COUNTY FUNDRAISING RECORDS
The Hardin Campaign Hauled in More than $640,000 Since Launching in March
ORANGE – Today, Marine combat veteran and former military prosecutor, Special Assistant United States Attorney, and Deputy District Attorney, Pete Hardin, announced that his campaign for Orange County District Attorney had raised over $640,000 since the campaign launched in March. The campaign has received contributions from over 2,000 individual contributors and the majority of contributions are under $100. Pete Hardin is a first time candidate facing a 25-year politician in incumbent DA, Todd Spitzer.
“The outpouring of support reflects a community that wants safety, justice, and integrity,” said former Marine Judge Advocate Pete Hardin. “Our message of a modern system of justice that’s based on data and social science instead of hyperbole is resonating with voters, but we are shattering records because Todd Spitzer has shattered the public’s trust. He spends his time going on ultra-conservative talk shows to critique prosecutors in other counties while crime and homelessness continue to rise here in OC. He is distracted, he has dropped the ball, and it’s time to end the sideshow that defines his time in office.”
Since Todd Spitzer took office, violent crime has spiked, homelessness has skyrocketed more than 40%, and hate crimes against the AAPI community have jumped more than 1800%. Furthermore, Spitzer faces at least five lawsuits for turning a blind eye to rampant sexual harassment in his office, including one lawsuit alleging he knowingly promoted a perpetrator of sexual harassment to a senior staff position. Election Day is June 7.
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Current Orange County District Attorney Republican Todd Spitzer’s tenure has been defined by scandal. Four women in Spitzer’s office have filed claims asserting Spitzer promoted an employee and close friend despite having been made aware of the sexual harassment complaints against him. Spitzer later allowed the employee, who was the best man at his wedding, to retire with top flight benefits. Spitzer also attempted to drop sexual assault charges against high-profile defendants, leading a judge to remove him from the case. Survivors of the sexual assault survivors were “dragged through the mud” and “grossly mistreated” by Spitzer for two and a half years, leading two of them to abandon their case.
Spitzer has been involved in an evidence booking scandal, a jailhouse informant scandal, and has defamed a victim of OC’s deadliest mass shooting as retaliation for peaceful protest. Spitzer has also defended a DNA collection program known informally as “Spit and Acquit” that coerces defendants to give up their DNA to law enforcement, a practice the ACLU has called “unconstitutional.“
Pete Hardin is a former Judge Advocate in the U.S. Marine Corps, Deputy District Attorney, Special Assistant United States Attorney, and one of Southern California’s leading litigators running for Orange County District Attorney. Pete entered public service when, in 2005, he earned his commission as a second lieutenant in the Marine Corps. A combat veteran, Pete served in Helmand Province, Afghanistan in 2011 and 2012 as a member of 1st Reconnaissance Battalion. Pete is a member of the Democratic Party.
And here’s the Spitzer campaign’s announcement:
Bombshell Report Reveals Woke DA Candidate Pete Hardin Abused Position of Authority at OCDA’s Office to Prey on Female Witnesses, Victims, and Defendants
Spitzer calls on Hardin to drop out of DA’s race
(ORANGE COUNTY, CA) – A breaking bombshell report from the Washington Examiner has revealed woke District Attorney candidate Pete Hardin used his position of authority at the Orange County District Attorney’s office to prey on vulnerable witnesses, victims, and defendants. Based on this information, Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer is calling on Hardin to drop out of the District Attorney’s race immediately.
According to the Assistant District Attorney in charge, documents, and ex-colleagues, Hardin offered reduced punishments and preferential treatment to females he thought were attractive. Reported incidences of Hardin’s misconduct include following a defendant to her car to ask her on a date, lowering recommended sentences without explanation, and sexual harassment.
Hardin resigned from the District Attorney’s office just two months after his misconduct was discovered by supervisors. The revelations follow Hardin’s recent admission that he was also forced to resign from the military for sexual misconduct.
“As if Pete Hardin’s woke, pro-criminal agenda wasn’t bad enough, it turns out he’s a predator, too,” said Todd Spitzer, Orange County District Attorney. “How can Hardin be trusted to prosecute defendants when he’s trying to date them?”
“We are not Los Angeles or San Francisco, and I will never let Hardin turn us into that. Orange County can’t have its District Attorney’s office run by someone who has no ethical standards.”
“Given these alarming revelations and Hardin’s repeated pattern of sexual misconduct, I am calling on Pete to drop out of the race immediately. Hardin is unfit to serve in public office, especially this one, which is responsible for prosecuting sexual predators,” Spitzer concluded.
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Orange County’s rapidly changing electorate has led Democrats to now outnumber Republicans in Orange County holding a 4.1% voter registration advantage.
Now the Washington Examiner is a conservative newspaper; the first error in the story is describing OC as “conservative” when its pretty purple overall and downright blue in certain cities. The paper likely won’t touch on Spitzer’s own office issues managing his best friend’s behavior or his refusal to do anything about the hazing at Mater Dei.
The announcement reeks of panic in the Spitzer camp looking at Hardin’s donations. And Todd should know that “woke” means someone who paid attention in history and science class in high school. That term triggers no one on the left.
Todd Spitzer should be more worried about the current sexual misconduct allegations against him, as well as the myriad of lawsuits filed in the last year alone. If the allegations about Pete Hardin at OCDA are true, ho was he subsequently hired as an Assistant US District Attorney?
Something doesn’t add up. Spitzer is so busy fingerpoiting he doesn’t see how rotten his own image is. Oh, and he sat back and watched his best friend Gary Logalbo molest a 16 year old intern at OCDA. That is very serious, I’m surprised it hasnt made national news