Just two days into his tenure as San Francisco's District Attorney, Chesa Boudin fired at least seven prosecuting attorneys. Boudin said the actions were necessary to carry out the progressive policies he campaigned on.

“I had to make difficult staffing decisions [Friday] in order to put in place a management team that will help me accomplish the work I committed to do for San Francisco," Boudin said in a statement.

It’s not unusual for a newly elected district attorney to restructure the management team, said Lara Bazelon, a law professor at the University of San Francisco. The attorneys are at-will employees, which means they can be fired without reason.

Bazelon was a member of Boudin’s policy team during his campaign.

"It's common to fire people who are in management at the top level who are not going to be enthusiastic about the new agenda," Bazelon explained.

Bazelon gave the example of Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner, another progressive prosecutor who campaigned on criminal justice reform. Krasner fired 31 members of his staff in 2018, three days after he was sworn in.