David Minier (born October 1, 1934) is a retired City Councilman, District Attorney of

Santa Barbara County Santa Barbara County, California, officially the County of Santa Barbara, is located in Southern California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 448,229. The county seat is Santa Barbara, and the largest city is Santa Maria. Santa Barba ...

and Madera County, and

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

judge. With a Law Career spanning nearly 60 years, David Minier has Defended, Prosecuted, and Presided over law cases in over half the counties in

and currently is a part time Judge in Madera County.

Early life and education

Minier was born on October 1, 1934 in

Ventura, California Ventura, officially named San Buenaventura ( Spanish for " Saint Bonaventure"), is a city on the Southern Coast of California and the county seat of Ventura County. The population was 110,763 at the 2020 census. Ventura is a popular tourist d ...

. He graduated

Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the n ...

with a B.A. in 1957 and graduated

Stanford Law School Stanford Law School (Stanford Law or SLS) is the law school of Stanford University, a private research university near Palo Alto, California. Established in 1893, it is regarded as one of the most prestigious law schools in the world. Stanford La ...

in 1960. He has also studied at the

National Judicial College The National Judicial College (NJC) was established in 1963 as an entity within the American Bar Association. The NJC moved to the campus of the University of Nevada, Reno The University of Nevada, Reno (Nevada, the University of Nevada, or UN ...

The Judge Advocate General's Legal Center and School The Judge Advocate General's Legal Center and School, also known as The JAG School or TJAGLCS, is a graduate-level division federal service academy located on the grounds of the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia. The center is ...

, and

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

Personal life

David Minier has traveled to over 100 countries around the World. He has climbed

Mount Fuji , or Fugaku, located on the island of Honshū, is the highest mountain in Japan, with a summit elevation of . It is the second-highest volcano located on an island in Asia (after Mount Kerinci on the island of Sumatra), and seventh-highes ...

and

Mount Kilimanjaro Mount Kilimanjaro () is a dormant volcano in Tanzania. It has three volcanic cones: Kibo, Mawenzi, and Shira. It is the highest mountain in Africa and the highest free-standing mountain above sea level in the world: above sea level and ab ...

and has competed in Police athletic events internationally.

Career

Minier was a city councilman in Santa Maria from 1964 to 1966. Starting in 1967, Minier served as district attorney in

Santa Barbara County, California Santa Barbara County, California, officially the County of Santa Barbara, is located in Southern California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 448,229. The county seat is Santa Barbara, and the largest city is Santa Maria. Santa Barba ...

, and went on to serve as DA of Madera County from 1976–1991. He was Judge of the Superior Court of Madera County from 1991 to 2003. During his career, Minier was prosecutor in over 300 jury trials. He was DA in Santa Barbara County during the

1969 Santa Barbara oil spill The Santa Barbara oil spill occurred in January and February 1969 in the Santa Barbara Channel, near the city of Santa Barbara in Southern California. It was the largest oil spill in United States waters by that time, and now ranks third afte ...

, and the trial of

Gourgen Yanikian Gourgen Mkrtich Yanikian ( hy, Գուրգէն Մկրտիչ Եանիկեան, December 24, 1895 – February 27, 1984) was an Armenian genocide survivor. He is best known for the assassination of two Turkish consular officials and open deniers o ...

in 1972, for the assassination of two Turkish consular officials. Minier blocked evidence of the

Armenian genocide The Armenian genocide was the systematic destruction of the Armenians in the Ottoman Empire, Armenian people and identity in the Ottoman Empire during World War I. Spearheaded by the ruling Committee of Union and Progress (CUP), it was ...

from the court, fearing that it would lead to

jury nullification Jury nullification (US/UK), jury equity (UK), or a perverse verdict (UK) occurs when the jury in a trial, criminal trial gives a Acquittal, not guilty verdict despite a defendant having clearly broken the law. The jury's reasons may include the ...

. He later regretted this decision. He also prosecuted about 900 rioters during the 1970 riots in

Isla Vista Isla Vista is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Santa Barbara County, California in the United States. As of 2020 census, the community had a population of 15,500. The majority of residents are college students at t ...

. In Madera County he prosecuted the defendants of the

1976 Chowchilla kidnapping The 1976 Chowchilla kidnapping was the abduction of a school bus driver and 26 children, ages 5 to 14, in Chowchilla, California, United States, on July 15, 1976. The kidnappers held their captives in a box truck buried in a quarry in Livermo ...

. In 1994 Minier sued the

CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...

for withholding information on the

assassination of John F. Kennedy John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, was assassinated on Friday, November 22, 1963, at 12:30 p.m. CST in Dallas, Texas, while riding in a presidential motorcade through Dealey Plaza. Kennedy was in the vehicle wi ...

. He served as military attorney for the

California State Military Reserve The California State Guard (CSG) (formerly the California State Military Reserve) is a component of the California National Guard (CNG). The CSG is a volunteer force that supports the state missions and federal readiness of the Army and Air Natio ...

from 1983–2004, retired as Colonel.Terry, Shannon
"Military Appeals Panel hears first oral arguments."
''Grizzly'' vol. 8 no. 5, June 2013. He was awarded the U.S. Army Commendation Medal and Order of California for his military service. He taught criminal law classes at

Allan Hancock College Allan Hancock College is a public community college in Santa Maria, California. History In 1920 Allan Hancock College was started by the Santa Maria High School District. Originally called Santa Maria Junior College, classes were held until ...

from 1961-1966 and 1975-1976, and at

Fresno City College Fresno City College (FCC or "Fresno City") is a public community college in Fresno, California. It is part of the State Center Community College District within the California Community Colleges system. Fresno City College operates on a semester ...

from 1977-1981 and 1984-2004. Although formally retired, Minier continues to serve as an assigned judge in central California. He is also the author of three novels, ''The Ararat Illusion'' (2011), “One Nation Under Obama’s...A Descent into Tyranny” (2012) and ''Rafiki'' (2015).

References

External links

David Minier
{{DEFAULTSORT:Minier, David 1934 births California state court judges Living people People from Ventura, California Stanford Law School alumni The Judge Advocate General's Legal Center and School alumni Princeton University alumni