Michelle Ialeggio is a 15-year San Diego Deputy District Attorney who has dedicated her career to standing up for the most vulnerable in our society, children. She has strong trial experience with over 50 jury trials, including murder, child molestation, stalking, domestic violence, strangulation, elder abuse and violent crimes. Michelle is a litigator who is in the courtroom every single day. As a trial attorney and supervisor in the Family Protection Unit of the San Diego District Attorney’s office, Michelle oversaw a team of attorneys while also prosecuting many high-profile cases covered in the local news. In 2015 Michelle was awarded the outstanding achievement award from the San Diego Deputy District Attorney’s Association for her trial accomplishments and for bringing justice to victims in San Diego.  One of Michelle’s most cherished belongings is a picture hanging in her office of a 6-year-old molest victim hugging a court service dog, who along with Michelle, gave the child the courage to testify against her abuser in court.

As a prosecutor, Michelle has handled and evaluated over four thousand (4,000) criminal cases, learning how to make issuing decisions to ensure cases are issued and charged in an ethical manner and that alternatives to prison are in place when appropriate. In 2018, Michelle was appointed the San Diego District Attorneys Ethics Advisor, where she leads over 300 Deputy District Attorney’s in the area of office-wide ethics. She is also an adjunct professor at the University of San Diego School of Law, her alma mater.

Michelle has experience working collaboratively in the community. From 2016 to 2018 she served as a liaison at San Diego’s Family Justice Center where she worked directly with sexual assault and domestic violence victims and shared in an interdisciplinary approach to crimes involving domestic violence.  In 2014, Michelle was one of the founding members of the Human Trafficking Task Force and worked side-by-side with community leaders, elected officials, and Deputy Public Defenders to raise awareness of the growing and overwhelming problem of human trafficking in San Diego. Michelle has earned respect from judges and the criminal defense bar as well as the San Diego legal community, where she served on the board of directors for Lawyers Club of San Diego and currently is the First-Vice President of California Women Lawyers.

The judicial cannons prohibit a judicial candidate from making a statement which ties a candidate to an issue, case or controversy which is likely to come before them. Therefore, I will describe my political philosphy braodly. First, it is important to note judicial offices are nonpartisan positions. As a judicial officer I would uphold the law. It is important a judicial officer make this commitment even if a judge personally disagrees with a law. I am proud to have received endorsements from San Diego District Attorney Summer Stephan, Public Defender Randy Mize and City Attorney Mara Elliott along with Sheriff William Gore, retired Board of Supervisor Ron Roberts as well as Senator Toni Atkins, Assembleymember Todd Gloria and Congressman Juan Vargas. This wide support which crosses party lines should impress upon voters my commitment to being fair and doing the right thing.