He didn't think he'd ever be a lawyer. Now, he might be L.A.'s next city attorney

This is read by an automated voice.Please report any issues or inconsistencies here.

See more from the L.A.Times in Google Search.

Set us as preferred Growing up without “two nickels to rub together,” John McKinney never thought he’d be a lawyer.At the beginning of 2026, sitting in his office as one of the highest-ranking prosecutors in Los Angeles County, McKinney had no designs on trying to become L.A.’s city attorney.But if he can beat progressive darling Marissa Roy next month and finish off an upstart campaign that barely had a pulse six months ago, McKinney would complete a lifelong underdog story that saw him go from working as a house painter and substitute teacher to pay for college to serving as the top lawyer for the second-largest city in America.A highly regarded trial lawyer, McKinney, 58, claims an undefeated record in homicide trials and has won convictions in some of the region’s most infamous crimes, including the murder of beloved L.A.

hip-hop star Nipsey Hussle.He reached his longtime perch in the district attorney’s office’s major crimes unit after a lifetime of struggle.

Both of McKinney’s parents died before he was 5, and he was raised by his oldest sister in a cramped household with half a dozen other children in Passaic, N.J.McKinney beams with pride while discussing his hardscrabble East Coast upbringing — whether praising his sister’s hustle for working “six days a week,” or refusing to turn in his Yankees hat in a Dodger blue city.

In interviews, he’ll sneak in a verbal jab at Roy, then finish the insult with a wry smirk.McKinney notes he’s been a prosecutor almost as long as his 34-year-old opponent has been alive.“She’s never tried a case,” McKinney said.

“When you’re running for city attorney overseeing trial lawyers and having to make high-impact decisions on whether to settle a case for $20 million or not, you should at least know what it’s like to go through a jury trial.” Cali...