California Gets 21 New Superior Court Judges

Altus W. Hudson, 52, of Los Angeles, fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge David S. Wesley. He was a partner at Kidd and Hudson from 1998 to 2011, and a deputy city attorney at Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office from 1995 to 1998. He is a Democrat.

Michelle C. Kim, 44, of South Pasadena, fills the vacancy created by the conversion of a court commissioner position on June 26, 2017. She has been a deputy alternate public defender at the Los Angeles County Alternate Public Defender’s Office since 2005, and a deputy public defender in the Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office from 2003 to 2005. Kim is a Democrat.

Terrance T. Lewis, 60, of Altadena, fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Karen J. Nudell. He has been a commissioner at Los Angeles County Superior Court since 2014, and was a deputy public defender at Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office from 1988 to 2014. He is a Democrat.

Debra L. Losnick, 58, of Los Angeles, fills the vacancy created by the conversion of a court commissioner position on December 14, 2017. She has been a commissioner at Los Angeles County Superior Court since 1996, where she was a juvenile court referee from 1990 to 1996. She was a contract county counsel at Los Angeles Office of County Counsel from 1986 to 1990. Losnick is a Democrat.

Jean M. Nelson, 54, of Altadena, fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Lesley C. Green. She has been a partner at Scheper Kim and Harris LLP since 2008, and was an assistant U.S. attorney at the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Central District of California from 1995 to 2006. She is a Democrat.

Jonathan L. Rosenbloom, 54, of Beverly Hills, fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Leland H. Tipton. He has been a sole practitioner since 2009. He was a partner at Rosenbloom and Rosenbloom from 1997 to 2009, and an associate at Anker, Hymes and Schreiber from 1992 to 1997. He is a Democrat.

Helen Zukin, 60, of Los Angeles, fills the vacancy created by the conversion of a court commissioner position on Dec. 14, 2017. She has been a partner at Kiesel Law LLP since 2010, where she was of counsel from 2006 to 2010. She was a sole practitioner from 1995 to 2006 and a partner at Simke, Chodos, Silberfeld and Anteau from 1992 to 1995, where she was an associate from 1990 to 1992. She is a Democrat.

Riverside County

Dorothy McLaughlin, 45, of Riverside, fills a new position created on Sept. 18, 2017. She has been of counsel at Best, Best and Krieger since 2015, and served as a career law clerk to the Hon. Sheri Pym, U.S. Magistrate Judge at the U.S. District Court, Central District of California from 2012 to 2015. She was deputy chief of the Riverside Branch Office for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Central District of California from 2011 to 2012, where she served as an assistant U.S. attorney from 2007 to 2012. She is a Democrat.

San Bernardino County

Stephanie E. Thornton-Harris, 54, of Pasadena, fills a new position created on Sept. 18, 2017. She has been a deputy federal public defender in the Federal Public Defender's Office, Central District of California since 2012. She was a bench officer at San Bernardino County Superior Court from 2007 to 2011, where she was a juvenile hearing officer from 1999 to 2001. She is a Democrat.

San Diego County

William Y. Wood, 58, of Carlsbad, fills the vacancy created by the elevation of Judge Patricia Guerrero to the Court of Appeal. Wood has been a commissioner at San Diego County Superior Court since 2009. He was a deputy district attorney at the San Diego County District Attorney’s Office from 1990 to 1998 and from 2001 to 2008 and was cross-designated as a special assistant U.S. attorney at the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Southern District of California from 2003 to 2006. He is a Democrat.

Solano County

Shauna L. Chastain, 48, of Fairfield, fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Garry T. Ichikawa. Chastain has been a sole practitioner since 2007. She was an associate at Mattice Law Offices from 1998 to 2007. She is a Democrat.

Trinity County

Eric L. Heryford, 54, of Weaverville, fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Elizabeth W. Johnson. Heryford has been district attorney of Trinity County since 2014. He was a deputy district attorney in the Trinity County District Attorney’s Office from 2006 to 2014 and from 1996 to 2002. He is a Democrat.

Tulare County

Kerri M. Lopez, 46, of Visalia, fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge James W. Hollman. She has been an assistant district attorney at the Tulare County District Attorney's Office since 2016, where she has held several positions since 1999, including supervising deputy district attorney and deputy district attorney. She is a Republican.

A superior court judge in California is paid $200,042.

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