Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday announced eight new Superior Court judge appointments in the greater Bay Area.
The appointments, among 22 made statewide on Friday to fill vacant seats, include two in Contra Costa County, one in Monterey County, one in San Mateo County, three in Santa Clara County, and one in Solano County.
Kirk Athanasiou, 45, a Contra Costa County deputy public defender, and Jennifer Lee, 51, a Contra Costa County Superior Court commissioner, were the two appointees to Contra Costa County Superior Court judgeships.
Jared Jefferson, 37, a Monterey County chief deputy public defender, was appointed as a Monterey County Superior Court judge, while Renee Reyna, 40, a San Mateo County Superior Court commissioner, was appointed as a new San Mateo County Superior Court judge.
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In Santa Clara County, Brian Buckelew, 48, a supervising deputy district attorney with the county, Shella Deen, 56, an attorney with the law firm Hoge Fenton Jones & Appel, and Rafael Sivilla-Jones, 54, a deputy attorney general at the California Department of Justice, were the three new judges appointed.
Solano County's newest judge is Janice Williams, who was serving as a deputy district attorney with the county.
Newsom on Friday also nominated Alameda County Superior Court Judge Victor Rodriguez to serve as an associate justice for the state's First District Court of Appeal, Division Three. The nomination will need to be confirmed by the Commission on Judicial Appointments, consisting of Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye, Attorney General Rob Bonta and Senior Presiding Justice J. Anthony Kline.
