Geneviéve Jones-Wright

Geneviéve LaChelle Jones-Wright[1] is a San Diego, California native who has served as a public defender since 2006. Jones-Wright ran to become the District Attorney of San Diego in the June 5, 2018 primary election against interim District Attorney Summer Stephan after the position was vacated by Bonnie Dumanis in July 2017. Jones-Wright lost the primary 62.62% to 37.02%.[2] She is a Democrat who is considered a progressive reformist, though the District Attorney position is non-partisan.

Biography

Geneviéve Jones-Wright is a lifelong San Diego native who was raised and lives in southeastern San Diego.[3][4] She was raised by a young, single mother who worked as a cafeteria worker at Lincoln High School.[5] Jones-Wright decided to pursue the law when she was 8 years old after feeling inspired by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall.[6] She graduated from Patrick Henry High School, received a bachelor's degree from the University of San Francisco, and received a law degree from Howard University School of Law.[5][7]

Jones-Wright became a public defender in San Diego in 2006.[7] She sits on San Diego’s Commission on Gang Prevention and Intervention and is a volunteer legal reviewer for the California Innocence Project.[5][7][8]

In January 2016, Jones-Wright was driving home from Mission Beach and got pulled over by police in front of Malcolm X Library in Valencia Park off Euclid Avenue, a road famous for entrapping SDSU students for alleged DUIs.[5] She was handcuffed at gunpoint due a DMV error that reported her car as stolen; an incident she recorded and published to her Facebook page.[9][10][11]

Run for San Diego District Attorney

Genevieve Jones-Wright announced her candidacy to become the District Attorney of San Diego, California in July 2017 against Summer Stephan, who was chosen to be interim District Attorney by Bonnie Dumanis when she stepped down in 2017.[7][12][13][14] Jones-Wright is a Democrat who is considered a progressive reformist.[7][15][16][17] She has stated that the justice system should be reformed to work to improve public safety and rehabilitation as opposed to increasing prosecutions.[5][18] She has pushed to test every rape kit in San Diego.[19] Jones-Wright has stated that voluntary sex workers in San Diego should be allowed to make their own choices as opposed to being treated like criminals.[20][21] She has been noted for being against the War on Drugs and defending the state's cannabis laws against federal intervention.[22][23][24][25][26][27] She would also like to roll back cannabis convictions.[28] She has criticized previous District Attorneys for choosing not to investigate police shootings.[29]

Jones-Wright and her candidacy has been described as part of a Reformist wave in DA elections across the U.S.[29][30][31] Malcolm Jenkins spoke about how the criminal justice system needs change from within to correct systemic racism, and pointed to Jones-Wright's run in San Diego as a key race.[32] Jones-Wright has been endorsed by the San Diego Democratic Party, California Senator Kamala Harris, George Soros, Assemblymember Lorena Gonzalez-Fletcher and Lt. Governor Gavin Newsom.[33][34][35][36][37]

References
  1. https://www.martindale.com/san-diego/california/genevieve-lachelle-jones-wright-168634842-a/
  2. https://www.sdvote.com/content/dam/rov/en/archive/201806bull.pdf
  3. "Progressive Geneviéve Jones-Wright Seeks to Become District Attorney in San Diego". Daily Kos. Retrieved 2018-02-18.
  4. Belfer, Aaryn (2018-03-13). "District Attorney candidate Geneviéve Jones-Wright claps back". San Diego CityBeat. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
  5. "Meet the Public Defender Who Wants to Be San Diego's Top Prosecutor - Voice of San Diego". Voice of San Diego. 2017-07-05. Retrieved 2018-02-18.
  6. Kragen, Pam. "Black women unite in quest for political office". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved 2018-02-18.
  7. "Longtime Public Defender Announces Bid for San Diego District Attorney - Times of San Diego". Times of San Diego. 2017-07-05. Retrieved 2018-02-28.
  8. "Genevieve Jones-Wright | City of San Diego Official Website". www.sandiego.gov. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
  9. Service, City News. "Public Defender Announces Run For San Diego County District Attorney". KPBS Public Media. Retrieved 2018-02-18.
  10. Stewart, Joshua. "Public defender enters DA race". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved 2018-02-18.
  11. "Morning Report: The DA Hopeful With an SDPD Encounter to Remember - Voice of San Diego". Voice of San Diego. 2017-07-05. Retrieved 2018-02-18.
  12. Mento, Tarryn. "San Diego District Attorney's Race Pits Public Defender Against County's Interim Prosecutor". KPBS Public Media. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
  13. "Geneviéve Jones-Wright campaigns to become the next San Diego County District Attorney -". McKinnon Broadcasting. 2018-05-17. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
  14. Ash, Allison (2018-05-15). "Undecided voters could decide District Attorney race". 10News. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
  15. "What the DA Candidates Really Mean When They Talk About Criminal Justice Reform - Voice of San Diego". Voice of San Diego. 2018-05-14. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
  16. Moran, Greg. "District attorney: Campaign for San Diego's top prosecutor is a study in contrasts". sandiegouniontribune.com. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
  17. Meyerson, Collier (2017-11-14). "Prosecutors Keep Their Jobs by Putting People in Jail. Can They Be Leaders in the Fight for Criminal-Justice Reform?". The Nation. ISSN 0027-8378. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
  18. "VOSD Podcast: Dumanis' Take on Double Dipping and Geneviéve Jones-Wright - Voice of San Diego". Voice of San Diego. 2018-02-16. Retrieved 2018-02-28.
  19. Hindmon, Jade. "#ShowUsYourMailers: Mailer From Geneviéve Jones-Wright Calls For Testing Every Rape Kit". KPBS Public Media. Retrieved 2018-04-25.
  20. "There's Virtually No Such Thing as Voluntary Sex Work, Says DA - Voice of San Diego". Voice of San Diego. 2018-04-12. Retrieved 2018-04-25.
  21. "Morning Report: ICE Is Getting Fewer Notices From the Sheriff Under SB 54 - Voice of San Diego". Voice of San Diego. 2018-05-22. Retrieved 2018-05-23.
  22. Jayne, Pamela (2018-02-14). "Are the Feds coming for California's cannabis?". San Diego CityBeat. Retrieved 2018-02-18.
  23. "Where Loyalties Lie - Culture Magazine". Culture Magazine. 2018-02-08. Retrieved 2018-03-02.
  24. "Pot Legalization Brings 'The Resistance' to San Diego's Top Law Enforcement Races - Voice of San Diego". Voice of San Diego. 2018-02-06. Retrieved 2018-03-02.
  25. "Morning Report: New Question for Candidates, Pot or Not? - Voice of San Diego". Voice of San Diego. 2018-02-07. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
  26. "Politics Report: Candidates' Cannabis Use - Voice of San Diego". Voice of San Diego. 2018-03-31. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
  27. Jayne, Pamela (2018-02-14). "Are the Feds coming for California's cannabis?". San Diego CityBeat. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
  28. "DAs Making it Easier to Clear California Cannabis Convictions | Leafly". Leafly. 2018-02-12. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
  29. Swain, Elise (2018-04-10). "In Races for District Attorney, Insurgent Candidates Are Challenging Police-Backed Incumbents". The Intercept. Retrieved 2018-04-25.
  30. "The New Reformer DAs". The American Prospect. Retrieved 2018-04-25.
  31. "Fearless Leader | Culture Magazine". Culture Magazine. 2017-08-03. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
  32. "Malcolm Jenkins - Leading the Eagles On and Off the Field - Extended Interview - The Daily Show with Trevor Noah | Comedy Central". Comedy Central. Retrieved 2018-03-08.
  33. Belfer, Aaryn (2018-03-13). "District Attorney candidate Geneviéve Jones-Wright claps back". San Diego CityBeat. Retrieved 2018-04-25.
  34. "San Diego Democratic Party Endorses Sheriff, DA, Assessor Candidates - Times of San Diego". Times of San Diego. 2017-07-20. Retrieved 2018-02-18.
  35. "Big-money Soros contributions change prosecutor campaigns". CBS. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
  36. writers, U-T Letter. "Citizens United, not George Soros, is the actual villain here". sandiegouniontribune.com. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
  37. "Billionaire Soros pumps $400K into DA's race to get Jones-Wright elected". inewsource.org. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
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