San Diego

Two San Diego County Superior Court judges and a former judge were sworn in Thursday as members of the 4th District Court of Appeal. Judges Richard Huffman and Gilbert Nares, and former Judge Charles Froelich were confirmed as Gov. George Deukmejian’s latest appointments to the appellate court.

Perhaps the best known of the three, Huffman, 49, is a one-time prosecutor who prosecuted former Mayor Roger Hedgecock and mobster Jimmy Fratianno. He was also the judge in both murder trials of former California Highway Patrol Officer Craig Peyer, who was convicted of killing San Diego student Cara Knott. Huffman’s appointment filled a vacancy created earlier this year by the retirement of Justice Edward T. Butler.

Nares, 45, was appointed to the Municipal Court in 1976 by Gov. Edmund G. Brown Jr. He was elevated to the Superior Court bench in 1978 by Brown. Froelich, 59, retired from the Superior Court bench in 1982 partly out of frustration with the criminal justice system. He is a former tax law professor at UC Berkeley and was appointed to the Superior Court in 1972 by Gov. Ronald Reagan. He has devoted most of his time to the Escondido winery and avocado groves that he owns.