Diana Becton

Diana Becton, also known as Diana Becton Smith[1] (born August 16, 1951) is a former trial judge and is currently both the first woman and first African American to be elected district attorney in the history of Contra Costa County in California.

Diana Becton
District Attorney of Contra Costa County
Assumed office
September 18, 2017
Preceded byMark Peterson
Personal details
Born (1951-08-16) August 16, 1951
Political partyDemocratic
EducationSan Francisco State University (BA)
Golden Gate University (JD)
Pacific School of Religion (MTS)

Education and early career

Becton attended Oakland public schools. She received a B.A. in Economics from San Francisco State University and a J.D. from Golden Gate University School of Law.[2] Becton worked as a Housing Finance & Development Supervisor for the city of Richmond from 1979 to 1987. Becton worked in private practice from 1987 to 1995.[2]

Becton was appointed to the Contra Costa County Superior Court in 1995 by then Governor Pete Wilson. In 2011, she was elected by her colleagues to be the presiding judge, in charge of court administration.[2][3]

Becton has a Master's degree in Theology from the Pacific School of Religion.[2]

Becton was admitted to the State Bar of California on December 11, 1986, and her attorney status is active. She became a judge on November 28, 1995,[4] where she served for 22 years on the Contra Costa County Superior Court.

Contra Costa County District Attorney

On June 14, 2017, Contra Costa County District Attorney Mark Peterson resigned in a plea deal with the Attorney General of California's office, relating to the improper use of campaign funds for personal expenditures.[5][6]

The Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors reviewed applications and chose Becton out of 12 applicants and five finalists to serve the remainder of the unexpired term.[7] In her application, Becton said that she would pursue criminal justice reform issues such as bail reform.[3] Becton's supporters praised her community involvement and her work helping former prisoners integrate back into society.[3][8] During the selection process, an anonymous letter accused Becton of plagiarism in her written application for the District Attorney position. Becton admitted to copying material and said that she did not intend to present the ideas as her original thoughts.[3][9][10][8][11] Becton was sworn on September 18, 2017.[12]

Becton ran for election for a full term for District Attorney.[13] In the June 2018 primary election, Becton won a majority of the vote, winning the contest outright and pre-empting a November runoff.[14] The Mercury News noted that her election victory made her "the first African-American and first woman to be elected DA in the office’s roughly 160-year history".[14] Becton's campaign received support from a consortium of social justice groups, Democratic activists, and wealthy funders including George Soros.[15][16]

In 2019, Becton established a conviction integrity unit to review wrongful convictions.[17] The unit moved to dismiss three convictions that relied on the uncorroborated testimony of a police officer who was accused of misconduct. The misconduct came to light after a new state law, SB 1421, made certain police records accessible to public records requests.[18][19]

On July 7, 2020, Becton charged two residents of Contra Costa with a hate crime for allegedly defacing a Black Lives Matter mural.[20]

In April 2021, Becton's office filed charges against former Danville Police Officer Andrew Hall, for the 2018 killing of Laudemer Arboleda while on duty. Becton said that Hall used "unreasonable and unnecessary force" when he shot Arboleda during an attempted traffic stop. A jury convicted Hall for assault with a deadly weapon, and deadlocked on the charge for voluntary manslaughter.[21] In March 2022, Hall was sentenced to six years in prison.[22]

In the June 2022 election, Becton secured a majority of the vote and won re-election, defeating opponent Mary Knox. Columnist Mark Z. Babarak wrote that Becton successfully campaigned on both public safety and criminal justice reform. Becton was able to win while Chesa Boudin, another progressive District Attorney in the Bay Area, lost his election.[23] In an interview after the election, Becton noted that her campaign's messaging on a) public safety and b) accountability for public officials and police officers resonated the most with voters. Becton declined to opine on Boudin's campaign performance.[24]

Personnel Issues

In July 2019, Chief Deputy District Attorney Phyllis Redmond resigned, citing disagreements in management style. Redmond said that Becton did not seek input from prosecutors on key decisions around changes to the state's murder law, leading to the freeing of a prisoner after their murder conviction was overturned. Redmond joined at least 12 staff attorneys out of about 90 who had resigned in the prior six months. The report suggested that staff members in the District Attorney's office resisted Becton's progressive reforms and progressive changes to state law that seek more alternatives to traditional "tough on crime" measures.[25]

In 2019, Deputy District Attorney Mary Knox filed a complaint of retaliation against Becton. According to Knox, Becton demoted Knox after learning that Knox supported Becton's opponent in the 2018 election. The merit board sent the case before an administrative law judge, who recommended that Becton had not committed political retaliation.[26] In 2021, the Contra Costa Merit Board rejected the recommendation, and some board members cast doubt on sworn statements made by Becton and her chief deputy.[26] Knox went ran against Becton for District Attorney in 2022.[27][28]

In February 2020, four women deputy district attorneys sued Becton in federal court for gender and age discrimination, alleging they were demoted and passed up for promotions.[29][30]

Personal life

Becton grew up in East Oakland.[31] She resides in El Sobrante, California.[12]

In 2020, Becton married Dr. Alvin Bernstine, a pastor.[32][33] Becton received criticism for hosting an outdoor wedding at her home in August 2020, when the county had placed restrictions on gatherings to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. Becton said she consulted with the county health services and that "I did everything that I knew possible to obtain the best information".[34][35]

See also

References
  1. ABC30 staff (December 30, 2009). "Boy charged in Portola Middle School rape pleads not guilty". ABC30 Fresno. Archived from the original on November 13, 2017. Retrieved November 13, 2017.
  2. "New Contra Costa DA Becton takes oath of office, begins her interim tenure". Contra Costa Herald. September 25, 2017. Archived from the original on November 26, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  3. Veklerov, Kimberly (September 13, 2017). "Judge picked as interim Contra Costa County district attorney". San Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original on September 3, 2018. Retrieved September 2, 2018.
  4. The State Bar of California (2017). "Attorney Search: The State Bar of California". members.calbar.ca.gov. Archived from the original on February 11, 2023. Retrieved November 13, 2017.
  5. Gutierrez, Melody; Veklerov, Kimberly (June 15, 2017). "Contra Costa County DA quits after charges filed". San Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original on September 1, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  6. Winton, Richard (June 14, 2017). "Contra Costa County district attorney resigns, pleads no contest to felony perjury – LA Times". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 13, 2017.
  7. Alvero, Erika (September 19, 2017). "Diana Becton sworn in as Contra Costa district attorney". DanvilleSanRamon.com. Embarcadero Media. Archived from the original on November 13, 2017. Retrieved November 13, 2017.
  8. Taylor Jr., Otis R. (September 18, 2017). "New Contra Costa district attorney has chance to make a difference". San Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original on September 18, 2017. Retrieved November 13, 2017.
  9. "All Contra Costa DA finalists strongly deny being behind anonymous plagiarism letter, or knowing who did it". The Mercury News. August 29, 2017. Archived from the original on July 2, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  10. Gartrell, Nate (August 18, 2017). "Alleged plagiarism could shake up Contra Costa DA selection". East Bay Times. Archived from the original on September 29, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  11. Lewis, Sukey (August 18, 2017). "Unattributed Responses From Contra Costa County District Attorney Candidates Spark Concern". KQED. Archived from the original on July 2, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  12. "Recently retired judge selected as Contra Costa Co. D.A." KTVU. Bay City News. September 12, 2017. Archived from the original on October 4, 2017. Retrieved November 13, 2017.
  13. "These 3 Women Could Change the California Justice System for Good". San Diego Free Press. March 12, 2018. Archived from the original on September 3, 2018. Retrieved September 2, 2018.
  14. Gartrell, Nate (June 14, 2018). "Graves concedes; Diana Becton likely Contra Costa's first elected African-American, woman DA". The Mercury News. Archived from the original on February 11, 2023. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  15. "Here's why George Soros, liberal groups are spending big to help decide who's your next D.A." Los Angeles Times. May 23, 2018. Archived from the original on June 8, 2020. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  16. Thompson, Don (June 7, 2018). "Soros-backed California county prosecutors fail in 3 races". AP NEWS. Archived from the original on September 29, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  17. Sciacca, Annie; Gartrell, Nate (May 24, 2019). "Mission of DA's new unit is to spring the wrongly convicted from prison". East Bay Times. Archived from the original on July 2, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  18. Gafni, Matthias (December 20, 2019). "Prosecutors to dismiss 3 convictions involving disgraced Antioch cop". San Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original on December 22, 2019. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  19. Peele, Thomas (April 26, 2019). "District Attorney Launches New Probe Into Fired Antioch Detective". KQED. Archived from the original on July 2, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  20. Campos, Elizabeth (June 7, 2020). "2 Martinez Residents Charged With Hate Crime After Defacing BLM Mural". NBCBayArea. Archived from the original on July 7, 2020. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
  21. "Contra Costa Sheriff's Deputy Convicted of Assault in 2018 Fatal Shooting". KQED. October 26, 2021. Archived from the original on December 2, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  22. Lewis, Sukey (March 4, 2022). "'We Prayed He Would Get Jail Time': Ex-Contra Costa Cop Gets 6 Years in Prison for Killing Man With Mental Illness". KQED. Archived from the original on December 2, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  23. Barabak, Mark (June 30, 2022). "Column: How a progressive Bay Area prosecutor was reelected while San Francisco tossed its liberal D.A." Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on February 10, 2023. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  24. Ting, Eric (June 30, 2022). "This Calif. progressive DA beat back tough-on-crime backlash. How?". San Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original on August 15, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  25. Gartrell, Nate (July 2, 2019). "Contra Costa DA's number two resigns, says handling of murder cases 'made me sick inside'". The Mercury News. Archived from the original on December 4, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  26. Gartrell, Nate (April 16, 2021). "'I think that's fake news': Contra Costa merit board members say they don't buy DA's sworn testimony, rule in favor of demoted prosecutor". East Bay Times. Archived from the original on December 7, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  27. Gartrell, Nate (May 22, 2022). "Contra Costa DA race fought against backdrop of stark policy contrasts, lawsuit, office drama". The Mercury News. Archived from the original on July 2, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  28. Lin, Da (June 5, 2022). "Contra Costa County DA race pits boss against deputy". CBS News Bay Area. Archived from the original on July 2, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  29. Gartrell, Nate (February 27, 2020). "Four prosecutors sue Contra Costa D.A., alleging 'systemic' sexism". The Mercury News. Archived from the original on August 30, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  30. "4 Female Prosecutors File Discrimination Suit vs. Contra Costa DA". NBC Bay Area. February 28, 2020. Archived from the original on May 24, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  31. "Opinion: Diana Becton Becomes First Woman and Person of Color to be Elected  – Oakland Post". Oakland Post. June 23, 2018. Archived from the original on September 3, 2018. Retrieved September 2, 2018.
  32. "Contra Costa DA Diana Becton's husband named in underage sex suit". KRON4. April 27, 2022. Archived from the original on July 2, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  33. "Contra Costa DA Becton marries minister and preaches at their Richmond church". Contra Costa Herald. February 9, 2021. Archived from the original on July 2, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  34. Colorado, Melissa (February 8, 2021). "Contra Costa County District Attorney Defends Backyard Wedding". NBC Bay Area. Archived from the original on December 5, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  35. Gardiner, Dustin (February 7, 2021). "Contra Costa district attorney hosted wedding party as county battled summer surge". San Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original on December 5, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.

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