Bonnie Dumanis
Encyclopedia
Bonnie M. Dumanis is currently the District Attorney
of San Diego County. Dumanis has been the District Attorney since 2003, when she defeated incumbent Paul Pfingst. Dumanis is currently running for Mayor of San Diego.
Dumanis, a Republican
, is the first openly gay or lesbian DA in the country. She is the first Jewish woman to hold the post of District Attorney in San Diego.
in sociology
from the University of Massachusetts Amherst
. She received her Juris Doctor
(J.D.) degree from Western State University College of Law
(now Thomas Jefferson School of Law
) in 1976, and was admitted to the bar in 1977. Her first job as a junior typist in San Diego County as she studied law at night. Following admission, she served as a Deputy District Attorney from 1978 to 1990. In 1994, Dumanis was elected to the Municipal Court where she would serve for four years and started the first Drug Courts in San Diego, which has been recognized as a national model. In 1998, Dumanis was elected to the San Diego Superior Court where she started, a program called Domestic Violence Court to reduce reoccurrences by perpetrators.
brief in the case D.C. v. Heller pending before the U.S. Supreme Court, supporting the District of Columbia's ban on keeping functional firearms in the home for self defense, and on the possession of handguns.
after conclusions reached by toxicology experts during a review, prompted by the defense, of the evidence used for trial and conviction. Dumanis said her office acted based on available evidence, when it charged Sommer with murder in March 2006 and tried her in January 2007.
Since that time at least two of the 14 medical marijuana defendants have been acquitted by juries, further calling into question her investigation.
District attorney
In many jurisdictions in the United States, a District Attorney is an elected or appointed government official who represents the government in the prosecution of criminal offenses. The district attorney is the highest officeholder in the jurisdiction's legal department and supervises a staff of...
of San Diego County. Dumanis has been the District Attorney since 2003, when she defeated incumbent Paul Pfingst. Dumanis is currently running for Mayor of San Diego.
Dumanis, a Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
, is the first openly gay or lesbian DA in the country. She is the first Jewish woman to hold the post of District Attorney in San Diego.
Education and Career
Dumanis received a Bachelor of ArtsBachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in sociology
Sociology
Sociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...
from the University of Massachusetts Amherst
University of Massachusetts Amherst
The University of Massachusetts Amherst is a public research and land-grant university in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States and the flagship of the University of Massachusetts system...
. She received her Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...
(J.D.) degree from Western State University College of Law
Western State University College of Law
Western State University, College of Law is a private, for-profit American law school in Fullerton, California. It was the first law school established in Orange County and has over 11,000 alumni....
(now Thomas Jefferson School of Law
Thomas Jefferson School of Law
Thomas Jefferson School of Law, or TJSL, is an independent law school in San Diego, California. It offers a Juris Doctor, and three Master of Laws programs, including one that is exclusively online, as well as a combined J.D./M.B.A. with San Diego State University...
) in 1976, and was admitted to the bar in 1977. Her first job as a junior typist in San Diego County as she studied law at night. Following admission, she served as a Deputy District Attorney from 1978 to 1990. In 1994, Dumanis was elected to the Municipal Court where she would serve for four years and started the first Drug Courts in San Diego, which has been recognized as a national model. In 1998, Dumanis was elected to the San Diego Superior Court where she started, a program called Domestic Violence Court to reduce reoccurrences by perpetrators.
Initiatives
Dumanis's office helped write and fought to pass:- California's Proposition 83 (aka "Jessica's Law"), which tightens restrictions on sexually-violent predators and child molesters.
- Chelsea's Law – which increases penalties for sex offenders.
- California's Proposition 69 – which increases the use of DNA to solve crimes.
- SB618 (aka Prisoner Reform Program) which will offer non-violent prisoners job training, treatment and services to keep them from committing crimes after released.
Community Partner, Volunteer and Awards
- California State Bar Board of Governors, served
- California District Attorneys Association, Past President
- National District Attorneys Association, Board
- California Peace Officers Standards and Training, Commissioner
- San Diego County Police Chiefs and Sheriff's Association, Member
- Lawyers Club of San Diego, Past President
- San Diego Bar Association, Board of Directors
- University Of San Diego School Of Law, taught Ethics
- MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving), Advisory Board
- Second Chance, Advisory Board
- Chelsea's Light Foundation, Advisory Board.
People v. John Albert Gardner
John Albert Gardner III (born April 9, 1979) is an American convicted double murderer and sex offender. He confessed to the rape and murder of 14-year-old Amber Dubois from Escondido, California, the February 2010 rape and murder of 17-year-old Chelsea King from Poway, California, not far from Gardner's mother's home, where he lived, in the Rancho Bernardo community. Additionally, Gardner attempted to rape Candice Moncayo of San Diego County, and had been previously incarcerated for the molestation of a 13-year-old girl.D.C. v. Heller
Dumanis has urged the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold a ban on handguns in Washington, D.C. Dumanis participated in an amicus curiaeAmicus curiae
An amicus curiae is someone, not a party to a case, who volunteers to offer information to assist a court in deciding a matter before it...
brief in the case D.C. v. Heller pending before the U.S. Supreme Court, supporting the District of Columbia's ban on keeping functional firearms in the home for self defense, and on the possession of handguns.
Cynthia Sommer
In April, 2008, a woman accused and convicted by Dumanis's office of murder, was released, after two plus years of incarceration. Cynthia Sommer was convicted of fatally poisoning her Miramar Marine husband with arsenic. Charges were dropped on reasonable doubtReasonable doubt
Proof beyond a reasonable doubt is the standard of evidence required to validate a criminal conviction in most adversarial legal systems . Generally the prosecution bears the burden of proof and is required to prove their version of events to this standard...
after conclusions reached by toxicology experts during a review, prompted by the defense, of the evidence used for trial and conviction. Dumanis said her office acted based on available evidence, when it charged Sommer with murder in March 2006 and tried her in January 2007.
Operation Endless Summer (Green Rx) Conflict between Federal, State and Local Laws on the use of Marijuana
In February 2009, the District Attorney's office filed charges against 33 individuals charged in a drug investigation called Endless Summer. In a press conference for the operation DA Dumanis said the investigation was to protect military housing. The local news also ran the DA's story. After further investigation it was revealed that fourteen of those arrested are medical marijuana patients who were the initial target of the investigation named Green RX. A number of those charged were shown not to have any ties to the military, as had been claimed by Dumanis' office.Since that time at least two of the 14 medical marijuana defendants have been acquitted by juries, further calling into question her investigation.