Candidate for
Superior Court Judge; Monterey County; Seat 2

An Introduction

Todd has been a Monterey County prosecutor for the past 14 years, protecting victim's rights, seeking just punishment for those who would violate the law and providing closure for those affected by crime in our community. Todd is also a teacher, having taught at Hartnell College and at local law enforcement academies since 1998. In this capacity Todd has been an integral part of educating the next generation of peace officers who decided to dedicate their lives to the protection and safety of our community. Todd is also a Regional Director/Vice President of a private charitable foundation that helps fund educational, religious and spiritual projects across the country. Prior to coming to Monterey County, Todd prosecuted cases and taught classes in Key West and the Florida Keys.

At 42 years old, Todd is a career prosecutor who has dedicated 17 years to serving the communities where he has lived as a courtroom advocate and legal instructor. He has been a lawyer since 1990 (in Florida) and passed the California Bar in 1994.

Todd was born in Miami Beach, Florida to Linda and Peter. He has two siblings, Robin and Steven who are twins and four years older. Both Robin and Steven hold PhD's, are married with wonderful families, and are college professors in their hometowns of St. Paul, MN and Orlando, FL. Todd's parents still reside in the family home in Miami where they all grew up.

Education

Todd attended college at the George Washington University in Washington, D.C. where he graduated in 1987, with honors, with a Bachelor's degree in International Affairs. He continues to take an interest in international politics and economics by actively seeking out a variety of sources and information on these subjects. After graduating college, Todd received his law degree from the University of Florida at Gainesville in 1990 making the Dean's list five out of seven semesters. Todd studied abroad during both his undergraduate and law school educations.

Legal Career

Todd began with commitment to courtroom practice with two internships during law school. The first, as a clerk for a federal Judge in Miami, exposed him to the daily rigors of courtroom procedure and essential need for preparation. Being responsible for updating the Judge's law library gave him a deep appreciation of the ever expanding and changing law that had to be mastered in the future. The following summer Todd interned with the Miami State Attorney's Office, his first position as a public prosecutor, handling misdemeanor criminal cases and trials under the supervision of more seasoned attorneys.

Todd began his professional career as a prosecutor in Florida in 1991 with the Monroe County State Attorney's Office in Key West. In two years as a prosecutor in Florida Todd rose from a misdemeanor assignment to being a part of a senior felony prosecution team. Along the way, he handled the domestic violence calendar and an assignment to the juvenile division. He worked closely with the local courts and fashioned a special court for college offenders who committed minor offenses after traveling to the Keys during spring break. During a May 1993 vacation, while was riding his motorcycle solo around the country, he met and proposed to his wife of 13 years, Donna Shore. Donna lived in Los Angeles at the time and Todd soon moved out west and took the California Bar.

In 1994, with his second bar card in hand, Todd was very fortunate to find employment with the Monterey County District Attorney's Office in June of 1994. Todd was promoted to the highest attorney classification level in the office within two years. At that point, Todd resigned his position to take up a new challenge and became a Judicial Training Specialist in Moscow, Russia with the American Bar Association's Central and East European Law Initiative and the United State Department of Justice. During the spring of 1996, Todd traveled with his wife throughout the former Soviet Union organizing and speaking at seminars directed at the emerging independent Russian Federal Judiciary. These seminars brought Russian federal judges into direct contact with American federal judges and legal practitioners to expose them to the successes and procedures implemented in a free society in order to assist them in forming their own fair and independent legal system.

When that position concluded, Todd again had the great good fortune to be re-hired by the Monterey D.A.'s office in late 1996. Todd moved back to the Peninsula and restarted his career as a prosecutor and teacher.

Since returning to the Monterey County District Attorney's Office in 1996, Todd has been assigned to a variety of special assignments including the King City Office, the Prison Prosecution Unit, Adult Sexual Violence, the Juvenile Prosecution Unit, the Narcotics Division, and most recently as a major/general felony prosecutor in the Salinas Courthouse. Todd has shown great skill in managing extremely large numbers of cases through the years and has worked closely with the courts and the defense bar to improve procedures and recognize operational efficiencies to better serve the public at large. He has been a member of the Proposition 36/Drug Treatment Court Steering Committee since its re-institution in 2007.

Throughout his career, Todd has handled every type of criminal case, from minor traffic infractions, to first degree murder. Todd understands that the role of an advocate on behalf of the People of the State of California and a representative of the People of this community requires him to balance often competing interests. Todd has excelled in the delicate balancing of interest that is required of all prosecutors to reach fair and just resolutions of cases. These negotiations require sincerity and respect, the ability to think quickly and a deep and thorough knowledge of the law. Todd has all of these skills, and more. To back up his negotiation skills, Todd has continually honed his litigation skills in trial situations. Todd has tried over one hundred jury trials, dozens and dozens of bench trials and conducted innumerable adversarial evidentiary hearings on behalf of the People of Monterey County. He is a formidable and successful litigator with an understanding of courtroom procedure that comes from his daily courtroom appearances.

Legal Instructor

Todd is a seasoned advocate and is passionate in his approach to the law. This passion has animated his parallel passion for teaching. From his first position as a prosecutor in Florida, Todd has taught the law in a variety of settings. Law enforcement cadets in two states have learned how to become good officers and appreciate the importance of the laws of their state and this nation. Todd had always tried to instill a sense of awe and respect for the law in those who have attended his classes. At Hartnell College in Salinas, Todd taught criminal law and evidence courses in 1998.

Todd is also a long time instructor for the California Department of Parks and Recreation. Teaching law and procedure for the Parks Department since 2000, Todd helps cadets learn what they need to know to become peace officer Rangers and Lifeguards around the state. Todd also taught at the Monterey Peninsula College law enforcement academy where many of our fine local law enforcement officers have trained to serve our community. In 2007 Todd was honored to become a part of the community of instructors who teach on behalf of the California District Attorney's Association. His upcoming lecture on search warrants in March of 2008 will be his fourth presentation to that organization.

Charitable Foundation Work

Outside the area of the law Todd acts as a Regional Director and Vice President of the Ross Foundation. Since 1999 he has participated in the stewardship of that organization in its efforts to fund projects around the nation. The foundation is primarily focused on religious and cultural projects but, at Todd's direction, it has also funded environmental restoration projects and is currently funding a major trip for local youth to Uganda to assist in the physical and psychological recovery of child soldiers from the cruel wars in that region of the world. Todd's responsibilities include reviewing and overseeing grant requests, monitoring the financial well being of the organization and providing legal advice. Todd's leadership on the foundation has helped to put it on a sustainable course for its long term survival so that it can continue to fund a variety of projects and accomplish its goals for generations to come.

Family and Home Life

In 1999, Todd and Donna were blessed with the birth of their first son, Terak. In 2003 they were again blessed by the arrival of their second son, Elan. Terak is now a third grader at the Carmel River School where Elan will begin kindergarten this fall.

Todd is a member of the Carmel Resident Association, the Monterey County Bar Association, and the Monterey County Prosecutor's Association. Todd and his family are active members of Congregation Beth Israel in Carmel Valley.

Todd is a guitar player and a swimmer. He is fascinated by astronomy and cosmology and struggles mightily to understand the complex physics that attempts to explain it all. Todd is an avid, but not fanatical, crossword puzzler and routinely surprises himself by completing the Sunday New York Times puzzle. On most Friday nights between April and October he can be found on the beach around a bonfire surrounded by children and families. He enjoys gardening and woodworking (both with only a moderate amount of success). Todd enjoys hiking with his family in the beautiful area where he has been fortunate enough settle. He is also a relatively good cook.