Daniel Todd Satterberg (born 1959 or 1960) is an American attorney and politician who served as the prosecuting attorney of

King County King County is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. The population was 2,269,675 in the 2020 census, making it the most populous county in Washington, and the 12th-most populous in the United States. The county seat is Seattle ...

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

from 2007 to 2023.

Early life and education

Born in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

, Satterberg graduated from

Highline High School Highline High School is a public high school in Burien, Washington, United States, located about 3.5 miles from Seattle–Tacoma International Airport. Highline High School, the flagship high school of the Highline Public Schools district, op ...

and the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...

. He earned a

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

from the

University of Washington School of Law The University of Washington School of Law is the law school of the University of Washington, located on the northwest corner of the main campus in Seattle, Washington (state), Washington. The school is fully accredited by the American Bar Asso ...

Career

Satterberg began work in the King County Prosecutor's office. There he spent four years as a trial attorney in the Criminal Division before serving as chief of staff to then-Prosecutor

Norm Maleng Norman "Kim" Maleng (September 17, 1938 – May 24, 2007) was an American attorney and politician who served as the King County Prosecuting Attorney for 28 years. He was also an architect of Washington's Sentencing Reform Act. Early life ...

from 1990 to 2007. In May 2007, King County Prosecutor

unexpectedly died of a heart attack. Because Maleng had been elected as a moderate Republican, his successor was nominated by the King County Republican Central Committee. Satterberg was appointed by the

King County Council The Metropolitan King County Council, the legislative body of King County, Washington, consists of nine members elected by district. The Council adopts laws, sets policy, and holds final approval over the budget. Its current name and structure is ...

to fill the position until a special election was held in November 2007. That November, Satterberg was elected to fill the remaining three years of Maleng's term. He subsequently won election as a Republican to a full four-year term in 2010. In 2016, Satterberg successfully pushed for a voter approved amendment to King County Charter to make the office of Prosecutor nominally non-partisan. Despite holding a non-partisan office, Satterberg made public in 2018 that his political views align with the Democratic Party. Since 2008, Satterberg has served on the State of Washington Sentencing Guidelines Commission under appointment by Governor

Christine Gregoire Christine Gregoire (; née O'Grady; born March 24, 1947) is an American attorney and politician who served as the List of governors of Washington, 22nd governor of Washington, from 2005 to 2013. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), D ...

. He was the co-chairman, along with former Washington Attorney-General

Rob McKenna Robert Marion McKenna (born October 1, 1962) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 17th attorney general of Washington from 2005 to 2013 after serving on the Metropolitan King County Council from 1996 to 2005. A member of the ...

, of the Washington Law Enforcement Group Against Identity Theft (LEGIT), a quasi-governmental organization that seeks to raise awareness about consumer data privacy issues in Washington. Satterberg decided not to bring charges against Officer Ian Birk in the shooting of John T. Williams, a decision criticized by attorneys for the Williams family. In January 2022, Satterberg announced that he would not seek reelection when his current term expired.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Satterberg, Dan 20th-century births Highline High School alumni Lawyers from Seattle Living people People from King County, Washington Politicians from Seattle University of Washington School of Law alumni Washington (state) lawyers Washington (state) Republicans Delta Upsilon members