Van Nuys : D.A. Opens Special Enforcement
A special section of the district attorney’s office has opened in Van Nuys with the sole purpose of prosecuting sex crimes, child abuse and family abuse, Gil Garcetti announced this week.
The special section, headed by Deputy District Attorney Alan S. Yochelson, 40, will vertically prosecute cases, allowing one prosecutor to follow a case from start to finish, ensuring individual attention to victims.
“Not only will we vertically prosecute the cases, but we hope to assist law enforcement during investigations by offering legal advice in areas such as obtaining search warrants and other matters,” said Yochelson, a 15-year veteran of the district attorney’s office.
Drawing on his extensive trial experience with the office’s Sexual Crimes and Child Abuse and Career Criminal sections, Yochelson is the new section’s deputy in charge. Deputy District Attorney Susan Schwartz, who was prosecuting family violence cases downtown, and a third, not yet named, prosecutor will round out the section.
Yochelson received a bachelor’s degree at UC Santa Barbara in 1977 and a law degree at Southwest University in 1980. After a brief stint in a private law firm, he joined the District Attorney’s office in 1981.
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