Alameda DA Price disputes Gov. Newsom's claims after rescinding offer to send state prosecutors

Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price denied claims in Gov. Gavin Newsom's Thursday news conference about the ability of her office to prosecute crime in the county.

Newsom announced Thursday that his office would rescind its offer to send state prosecutors to the county to assist the District Attorney's Office's caseload, saying Price's office was uncooperative. In February, Newsom and the state Attorney General offered Price the use of prosecutors from the California National Guard and the state Department of Justice.

But in a letter to Price's office Wednesday, the governor's office said Price did not make use of state resources and did not take initial steps toward finalizing the memorandum of understanding.

Those resources will be shifted to the attorney general to take on state-led prosecutions that originate in Alameda County, according to the letter.

"We've been disappointed [in the] the lack of engagement with the DA's office," Newsom said. "So we're moving forward, rather than complaining about it, rather than lamenting about it."

Price addressed Newsom's statements in her own weekly press conference Thursday, which was live-streamed on the social media platform X .

"I cannot speak to the governor's disappointment," Price said. "I'm disappointed that the governor did not reach out to me directly and I'm disappointed that the governor did not acknowledge the efforts that our office is making."

In particular, Price denied Newsom's claims about the staffing of the Alameda County Narcotics Task Force. Newsom said the narcotics unit no longer had any personnel because its lead prosecutor, Michael Nieto, had left Price's office.

Nieto was appointed by Newsom last month to be a judge, but Price said he remains on her staff for the time being and has not indicated a final day of employment.

"The governor is misinformed, apparently," Price said about Nieto's employment status.

Protect the Win for Public Safety, the campaign opposing the effort to recall Price from office, also decried Newsom's characterization of the District Attorney's Office.

"Governor Newsom's decision to withdraw support and not give the county what it needs jeopardizes public safety and sends a disturbing message that he may not have intended to convey," the campaign said in a statement.