29 Jul Deputy Sheriffs Union Donates to Recall D.A. Becton Campaign

Contra Costa County District Attorney Diana Becton, seen in 2022, is the subject of an ongoing recall effort. (Ray Saint Germain / Bay City News)

By Samantha Kennedy
Bay City News

The Contra Costa County Deputy Sheriffs Association is throwing in its financial support to help recall District Attorney Diana Becton — $50,000 of it, a treasurer for the union’s political spending groups said.

The donation, made through the union’s independent expenditure group, is the largest the pro-recall group has received so far, according to county campaign finance records. The recall effort raised $8,740 before the deputies’ addition.

The union did not immediately respond to a request for comment about its donation.

Recall District Attorney Diana Becton, the group leading the effort, which includes families of crime victims, said the donation from the union was “an impressive demonstration to their commitment to restore public safety.”

The group first filed a Notice of Intent to pursue a recall in March and received the go-ahead from the county’s Elections Office to collect signatures in April. The group has until 5 p.m. on Sept. 25 to collect 72,556 signatures to put the recall on the ballot for voters.

On Saturday, Recall District Attorney Diana Becton announced that Richard Schlackman had joined their effort, the consultant who “strategized and ran the successful” recalls of San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin and Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price, the recall group said.

Recall supporters have accused Becton of a “persistent cycle of unaddressed criminal activity” and “lack of transparency regarding crime,” according to the group’s Notice of Intent.

The family of Alexis Gabe, a young woman who was killed by her ex-boyfriend, Marshall Jones, includes some of the organizers behind the recall.

Becton’s office declined to charge the mother of Jones for allegedly assisting him after the fact, citing insufficient evidence to convict her. Jones was shot and killed by police in Washington in 2022.

Champagne Brown, campaign manager for the opposition to the recall, said Becton is, “laser focused on one thing: ensuring safety and justice for all members of our community.”

“DA Becton has stood up for victims and fought for increased county and state resources to bolster efforts to make the county safer,” Brown said in the statement. “This recall effort will make Contra Costa County less safe while taking away valuable resources from our county — costing more than $8 million.”

During Becton’s push for reelection in 2022, the deputies’ union, alongside other police groups, also spent thousands of dollars to try and defeat her, according to county campaign finance records.

Becton responded to the recall effort in a filing with the county Clerk-Recorder and Registrar of Voters Office slamming the recall as “a politically motivated attack that misrepresents her record and undermines the will of Contra Costa County voters.”

Becton cited her electoral victories in 2018 and 2022 and listed several areas of law enforcement that she said were “bold actions to protect our communities.” She said her office was “aggressively prosecuting violent offenders, addressing organized retail theft, human trafficking, hate crimes, and eliminating backlogs of untested sexual assault kits.”

In the March 21 filing, Becton said she had expanded victim support services and “pioneered proactive crime prevention programs.”

She urged voters to reject the recall and said she was “committed to justice, transparency, and creating communities where all residents can thrive.”

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