I am 52 years old, and a homeowner in Rancho Calaveras. From the time I was in junior high school, I have been interested in the law and politics. My sixth grade project was on the Bill of Rights, and in the eighth grade I was Student Body President. I have always possessed a strong moral character, a passion for justice and fairness, and a desire to someday enter public service. I received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles in 1981. I was accepted into Southwestern College of Law in Los Angeles right after college, but decided to take some time off from school to pursue some opportunities I had in the music industry. I returned to school and received an Associate of Arts degree in Paralegal Studies from Southern California College of Business and Law in 1995. Five years later, while working full time for the County of San Bernardino, I decided to return to law school and enrolled in the 4-year evening program at the University of LaVerne College of Law. I transferred after 2 years to California Southern School of Law in Riverside, where I completed my Juris Doctor degree in 2004. I passed the State Bar Exam in 2005, and began taking cases, mostly family law. I wanted to get out of southern California and started looking for attorney positions in northern California. It was while driving from Sacrament airport to an employment interview in San Andreas that I was taken in by the beauty, history, and rural character of Calaveras County.
I am an attorney and active member of the California State Bar. In addition to working with the Law Offices of Kenneth M. Foley in San Andreas, I am contracted to provide Alternate Public Defender services in Amador County, handle court appointed criminal and juvenile cases in the Calaveras County Superior Court, and take on private cases. I practice primarily criminal law, but occasionally assist in civil litigation and family law matters. As an advocate for my clients, I have a duty to allege all legitimate claims or raise all viable affirmative defenses, make sure Constitutional and procedural due process rights are followed, and that a fair and just result is achieved based upon the facts and the law. Anyone who knows me will tell you that my ethics are beyond reproach.
Prior to moving to Calaveras County, I spent 12 years living in Apple Valley, California, a rural town located in the high desert area of San Bernardino County. While there, I took an active interest in local politics. Though I never sought public office, I did attend town council meetings, and would address the town council when motivated by certain issues to do so. I was contemplating running for town council just prior to deciding to relocate here. But the desire for public service remained, and as many of you know I ran for District 5 County Supervisor here in 2010.
During my campaign for District 5 Supervisor, several people approached me after the sad and untimely loss of Jeff Tuttle, suggesting that as a criminal law attorney I should abandon the Supervisor campaign and add my name to the ballot for District Attorney. But out of respect for Mr. Tuttle, and having committed 100% to the Supervisor race, it was not the appropriate time.
The one criticism I encountered while running for Supervisor was about being an attorney. There were some people I met that flat out told me, “I don’t like lawyers and I don’t think I want a lawyer being my Supervisor”. They weren’t mean about it, but there was no winning them over. I am hoping that since it is a requirement for the District Attorney to be an attorney licensed to practice law in the State of California, those people won’t still hold that against me.
While in Apple Valley, I was employed by the County of San Bernardino for almost 9 years. I spend 1 ½ years as a Child Support Officer where I obtained and enforced court ordered child support as an advocate for the children of the County. For over 7 years I was an Employment Service Specialist in the Economic Development Department assisting both CalWorks recipients and the public obtain skills to make themselves more marketable in the workforce, provide job placement assistance, and in some cases, refer them for vocational education and training. I facilitated workshops, and reviewed Requests For Proposals (RFP’s) from outside service providers. Perhaps most importantly, I gained an understanding of the inter-working relationships and economic dynamics, as well as the sometimes competing philosophies between County departments, partners, and outside agencies.
I have approximately 20 years experience in the private sector, many of those years in business and operations management positions in retail, service, and manufacturing environments. I have created and implemented budgets, developed policies and procedures, addressed personnel issues, trained and supervised staff, drafted contracts, proposals, bids, and job cost analysis. I believe those skills and experiences will be extremely helpful in the administrative side of being the Distrct Attorney, and in developing procedures and policy direction for the office. As a manager I learned that I don't have all of the answers. A smart manager will surround himself with talented people and engage the staff in the development process to come up with the criteria for evaluating cases under AB109, and the effective and efficient methods for implementing the necessary changes.
To contact David Singer email singer@calaverasda.com
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