Austin's Soros-backed DA faces Dem challenger pledging to 'return power' to crime victims: 'Enough is enough'

 A former prosecutor at a progressive district attorney's office in Austin, Texas is running as a Democrat against her former boss and told Fox News Digital that the Soros-backed DA's policies are "harmful to the community" and political ideology. Are based on. Uphold the law.

Defense attorney and Travis County prosecutor Jeremy Silstein told Fox, "I saw that there were some simple things that were not being done and I knew that whatever prosecutors left, their level of expertise was greatly diminished. " When asked by News Digital why he has decided to run against Travis County District Attorney Jose Garza.

"It became clear that the DA's office was not maintaining its basic functions and I feel like we're seeing it in the case outcomes and numbers that we're experiencing right now in terms of crime."

DA Garza has been widely criticized in the community for his perceived soft on crime policies and has been labeled a "rogue prosecutor" by those who say his office has failed to remove criminals from the streets and respect the wishes of criminals. Instead the focus has been on "reestablishing policing" and prosecuting police officers. Families of crime victims.

Silestein, who left Garza's office to start her own practice in December 2021, about a year after Garza was sworn in, told Fox News Digital that she has heard the concerns of those families and that her goal is " “Returning power to the victims”.

"It seems like every day there's a new story where someone is left holding the bag and is disrespected by the DA's office," Silestein said. "Being a prosecutor I know you have to make tough decisions, but the domestic violence and sexual assault cases I'm seeing are so inconsistent with my experience and what I want to do is bounce back." That power rests with the victim because the system is not designed to protect their rights.

“I think it's the DA's job when the case is right, when the evidence is there to make sure that we're doing our best and I think that's what victims and survivors want to see, that someone standing up We're ready to get up and fight those tough battles."

Celestine, a Texas native and member of the Alabama-Coushatta Tribe of Texas, pointed to the fact that he is a "proud Democrat" and believes in progressive reforms, but said good can only come from the system when the tools are in place. "To be used properly."

"What I'm seeing now is that those tools are being used in a way that is harmful to the community. So, you know, ignoring the crime that's happening is not a solution. On sentencing. Shining light is not the answer. The reason I know this is I have heard over 75 cases for juries in Travis County and I know how thoughtful and intelligent they are and I know they care about this stuff. "

"So when we start taking those decisions away from them, we don't really have the feedback that we need to move the system forward. The juries that come in and hear these cases, they're the whole are the backbone of the system and if we're not willing to put those cases in front of them, then we're saying that their opinion doesn't matter and that's the wrong way to go about this and I think that's what the DA's office That's exactly what he's doing, assuming he knows better. The citizens here in Travis County and I want to return to a system where we trust the citizens to speak."

Celestine pointed to a specific example of a case where he says DA Garza ignored his obligation to protect the people of Austin, involving a homeless man named Hilario Adrian who was accused of violent assault. Despite the charges he was released on the street, and then arrested once again. Accused of allegedly stabbing another homeless man to death.

"The guy was in jail for aggravated assault and he was accused of swinging a golf club and an ax at someone and he went to jail," Celestine said. "During that time, the DA's office had 90 days to bring charges in a case and they failed to do so. They missed their deadline. So by operation of law, he gets a dollar bond and Then he goes out and commits a murder. I just think this is so serious that it needs to be exposed, and it needs to be talked about. And, you know, Mr. Garza is going to say , Well, there were other ideas too. Not really. He missed his deadline. He dropped the ball and now there's a dead man on the other side."

“My question to Travis County is how many more stories do we need to hear before we say enough is enough and it's time for change?”

Garza has pointed to the coronavirus pandemic in response to criticism about the current backlog of cases facing his office and a recent KXAN report that cast doubt on the conviction rate numbers by his office. Celestine says part of the problem is that Garza "fired so many experienced prosecutors" leaving his office "suffering from experience."

"What we're seeing now is a backlog of over 7,000 cases that is now piled up on the same prosecutors who are tasked with tracking those timelines and making sure they're consistent with existing criminal procedures," Silstein. explained.

Austin police sound alarm on impact of police defiance past and present: 'It's crushing morale'

"That's all in itself and it creates dangerous situations. But in addition, there are other victims of crime in those 7,000 cases who have been ignored in the meantime. So there's been no resolution to that backlog and there's no way to do that." He has three years. I know there was a pandemic, but he had three years to fix it and it's not getting better. It's getting worse. So I don't know how many more he Deserves time and I'm calling him on the carpet on this one right now."

A major issue in Austin that has made national headlines is the low morale within the Austin Police Department after it was defunded by the City Council in 2020 and Garza's office stemming from Garza's campaign promise to prosecute police officers and mob mobsters. Strained relations between the United States and the police. The prosecutions he has undertaken since his election.

Celestine told Fox News Digital that he is "proud" of his relationship with APD and that the relationship between the DA's office and police "needs some drastic reassessment and recalibration."

"I grew up as a prosecutor and a young attorney in the system, so a lot of the officers and detectives who were making my cases when I was a younger attorney are now in commanding positions," Celestine said.

"So in terms of my relationship, those men and women on the force, they know my brand and they know I'm not even pro-APD or pro-law enforcement. If something went wrong, they know Jeremy Silstein would call them Will be held accountable. But they also know that making those relationships work requires good communication and trust and right now, it's broken, and it doesn't have to be that way."

Celestine continued, "Mr. Garza came and painted a political bullseye on a chart on the backs of APD officers. He advertised for prosecutors who specifically wanted to come do this and if we did the same with any other group , then there will be an uproar over what kind of fixed mentality we have in our affairs."

Silestein will face Garza in the March 5 Democratic primary in Austin.

Asked by Fox News Digital what his approach is to undecided voters, Celestine said the district attorney's office needs a "complete overhaul at the top."

"There is a level of incompetence and bad policy that, combined, is creating a really dangerous situation in Travis County," Celestine said. "The DA's office and especially Jose Garza are going to say that Austin is one of the safest cities in America, but people are not feeling that way. That's certainly not what the numbers are showing. So "I think we can point to very specific cases where the DA's office just didn't do its job."

Celestine said residents "feel neglected and disengaged from all actions of the DA's office."

"I'm telling people this shouldn't happen," Silstein said. “You can have a qualified candidate who knows Travis County, who knows the Travis County jury, and still get the job done while maintaining the progressive traditions of the office and I'm not afraid of that.”

"We always have to keep an open mind about what the system is capable of and what harms need to be fixed, what mistakes need to be fixed, but at the same time, we don't have to sacrifice public and community safety for the sake of it." "We have to do that," Silestein said. "People should feel safe when they go downtown. People should feel free to go out into the world without worrying whether they're going to be shot on Sixth Street and that's not the case right now.

“When my friends, when my family comes to visit and they say they're going to town, this is not a place I recommend they go and there's a very specific reason for that. It's all on its own. That's what happens. When we suffer as individuals, as communities, when families suffer, when businesses suffer, it all turns into a bigger problem and I think that's part of the DA's mission. "To make sure that we're addressing the needs of the community and that we don't overlook the issue of community safety."

Fox News Digital contacted Garza's office for comment but did not receive a response.