BY BRADEN CARTWRIGHT
Daily Post Staff Writer
A prosecutor has defeated District Attorney Jeff Rosen’s second-in-command in a rare contest to become a Santa Clara County Superior Court judge.
Chief Assistant District Attorney Jay Boyarsky conceded on election night. He’s now run for judge twice and applied for two judicial appointments, all without success.
“It appears that I will fall short in my campaign,” Boyarsky said in his statement.
Deputy District Attorney Johnene Linda Stebbins will take office.
The vote was 55% for Stebbins and 45% for Boyarsky Wednesday night.
The result is a flip from the primary, when Boyarsky received 47% of the vote and Stebbins received 36%.
In the primary, family attorney Nicole Ford was knocked out of the race with 17% of the vote.
Stebbins, 55, of San Jose, has worked for Rosen for 26 years.
She said she’s prosecuted everything from abalone poaching to homicides and currently works in the environment protection unit.
Stebbins also trains police officers and other prosecutors on topics like the evidence code or how to interview witnesses in child molestation cases.
“I’ve done almost everything you can do in the DA’s office, which is part of the reason I’m excited to go to the next phase and be a judge,” Stebbins said in an interview during her campaign.
At a candidate forum in February, Stebbins emphasized public safety. She was endorsed by 11 police unions and the Santa Clara County Government Attorneys Association, which represents prosecutors working for Rosen.
Stebbins grew up in Milpitas and attended UC Berkeley, where she swam and played water polo. She received her law degree from UC-Davis.
She said yesterday that she was “deeply honored” by the trust that voters have placed in her.
“This campaign was built on a shared commitment to justice and integrity, and I am grateful for the opportunity to carry those principles forward on the bench. To everyone who supported me, volunteered, and believed in me, thank you. I look forward to continuing to serve my community,” Stebbins said in a statement yesterday.
At a candidate forum, Boyarsky, 58, of Palo Alto, talked about having empathy for everyone in the courtroom. He also touted his experience as a supervisor managing the day-to-day operations of Rosen’s office for the last 13 years.
Boyarsky said he regularly has difficult conversations with prosecutors about handling cases, promotions, hirings and firings.
Boyarsky was endorsed by a long list of elected officials, including Rosen, Congresswoman Anna Eshoo, Supervisor Joe Simitain, state Sen. Josh Becker and Assemblyman Marc Berman.
Boyarsky went to UC-Santa Cruz and has a law degree from UC-Berkeley. He said he was inspired to be a judge 25 years ago when he worked as a clerk for federal Judge William Ingram.
“He is what I aspired to be as a judge: A person who made wise decisions, worked hard, treated everyone with kindness and empathy, and served with humility and respect for the law,” Boyarsky said yesterday.
Boyarsky applied with the Governor’s Office to be a judge in 2007 and again last year but wasn’t selected after a review by the Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation.
Boyarsky also ran for a judge position in 2008 but finished in fourth out of five candidates.
“Running for public office is challenging. It is also very rewarding, even when the result isn’t the desired one,” Boyarsky said in a statement yesterday.
This time, Boyarsky and Stebbins ran for a seat left open by retiring Judge Vincent Chiarello. The term is six years.
Chiarello worked at the Palo Alto Courthouse, but Stebbins could be assigned anywhere in the court system at the beginning of the year.
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