A teen killer whose light sentence was a lightning rod in efforts to recall Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón has been charged with armed robbery after he was released early from juvenile detention.

Jalen Amir Yoakum, 23, was arrested this month alongside two other suspects, and charged wielding a stolen handgun in the robbery of Rolex watches, according to an internal LAPD memo shared by Fox News reporter Bill Melugin.

In September 2017, Yoakum was 17 when he was charged with murdering 40-year-old Ontario Courtney, who police say was an innocent motorist mistaken for a rival gang member after his car broke down.

Yoakum was charged as an adult in the case, with prosecutors citing his social media posts from behind bars boasting of his gang affiliation with the Main Street Mafia Crips, as well as videos showing him 'practicing' drive-by shootings with a paintball gun.

But after Gascón took office in late 2020, the DA banned prosecuting juveniles as adults and transferred Yoakum's case to juvenile court, also dropping all gang and gun enhancements against him.

Yoakum pleaded guilty to murder, but because he was charged as a juvenile, he was set for release by the time he turned 25 in 2025, and was apparently released early for reasons that are unclear.

Jalen Amir Yoakum, 23, (center) was arrested this month and charged wielding a stolen handgun in the robbery of Rolex watches, according to this internal LAPD memo shared by Fox News reporter Bill Melugin

Yoakum's previous light sentence for murder was a lightning rod in unsuccessful efforts to recall Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón

The case became a lightning rod in the ultimately unsuccessful push to recall Gascón, with the recall campaign committee posting on social media: 'Violent criminals like Jalen Yoakum know that George Gascón is their biggest advocate.'

Gascón, a progressive prosecutor who has pushed for more leniency and rehabilitation for criminal offenders, made banning adult charges for juveniles a signature part of his reforms.

'We have ended the practice of prosecuting children as adults,' Gascón said in 2021, as he reviewed accomplishments from his first 100 days in office. 'Since taking office, we have withdrawn 77 pending motions to transfer kids to adult court.'

Now, Yoakum's latest arrest could offer another line of attack for Gascón's critics as he seeks re-election in November 2024, against an already growing field of challengers.

According to the LAPD documents shared by Melugin, Yoakum was arrested alongside two other suspects, James Garrett and Charles Emmerson, in connection with an August 2 armed robbery of a Rolex watch near the intersection of Beverly Boulevard and Harper Avenue.

Police tied the suspects to the crime through a white Infiniti Q50 spotted at the scene, of which Emmerson is allegedly the registered owner.

All three suspects were charged with felony robbery, and Yoakum was additionally charged with possession of a stolen and loaded firearm.

Yoakum (left) was 17 when he was charged with murdering 40-year-old Ontario Courtney (right), who was an innocent man mistaken for a rival gang member after his car broke down

After his 2017 arrest, Yoakum continued to boast of his affiliation with the Main Street Mafia Crips in social media posts from behind bars, prosecutors said

Yoakum, right, regularly posted to social media from juvenile detention, boasting of his gang affiliation, prosecutors say

County records confirm that Yoakum was arrested on August 9 in the Wilshire Division and booked on felony charges.

He is being held without bail at Men's Central. It was unclear whether he had an attorney to speak on his behalf, and he is next due in court on Thursday.

The Los Angeles District Attorney's Office did not immediately return a request for comment from DailyMail.com on Saturday.

Two years ago, Fox 11 reported that murder victim Courtney's family was furious that Yoakum had been transferred to the juvenile system.

'If you wanna go out there and act like a man and shoot and kill people, then you should be treated that way,' said Allyson Ostrowski, an attorney for the family, told the outlet.

'For Mr. Yoakum, you've been in the criminal justice system since you were 12 and you've been offered service after service, program after program, and you've not taken advantage of any of that,' Ostrowski said.

'You've just continued to be part of the gang, that makes you one of the people that needs to be tried as an adult.'

Before Gascon took office, the former DA cited these photos of Yoakum posing with guns as she charged him as an adult with Courtney's murder

Social media photos from the Main Street Mafia Crips show their boast of being 'Hoover Killers' in reference to the rival crew that controlled the South Hoover Street area in the Broadway-Manchester area of South Los Angeles

Courtney was driving on South Hoover Street, an area controlled by the Hoover street gang, when his car broke down on September 13, 2017.

He was waiting for a tow truck when he was attacked by gangsters from Yoakum's Main Street Mafia Crips set, who believed that he was a member of the rival Hoovers.

Courtney was shot 36 times and did not survive.

His family members say he had absolutely nothing to do with street gangs, and was caught up in a case of mistaken identity.

'My brother had no gang affiliation,' Aja Courtney, Ontario Courtney's younger sister told the local Fox affiliate. 'I can't even put into words how much I miss him.'