Reflecting Our Diversity
Welcome aboard to Traffic Court Commissioner Ruben De La Torre, the newest member of the Ventura County Superior Court bench.
By all accounts he arrives with solid legal credentials, the respect of his peers, a reputation for efficiency and enthusiasm--and a couple of qualifications that will help the court better reflect and represent the public it serves.
De La Torre is expected to bring a fresh perspective to a bench long criticized for being too white and too dominated by former prosecutors. At 33 he is the youngest officer on the local bench. He is one of only three Latinos and three former public defenders among the 25 judges and four commissioners now serving.
None of those factors makes him more qualified than others who might have gotten the job. But The Times believes that public institutions--including the courts--should strive to reflect the diversity of their constituency. De La Torre’s selection by the county’s sitting judges is a step in that direction; we encourage Gov. Gray Davis to keep that goal in mind as he fills future vacancies on the bench.
As commissioner of traffic court, De La Torre has the busiest assignment on the bench with up to 200 cases crossing his desk every day. Commissioners are selected by the county’s sitting judges to preside over limited types of cases, such as traffic and misdemeanor matters. De La Torre was chosen from a field of 39 applicants who sought the seat vacated by Judge Kent M. Kellegrew when he was appointed to the Superior Court by the governor.
A lifelong Oxnard resident and son of a migrant farm worker, De La Torre attended local elementary and junior high schools and graduated from Oxnard High School in 1984. He earned an undergraduate degree from Cal State Northridge--the family’s fourth child to graduate from college--and a law degree from Hastings College of Law in San Francisco. In 1991, he passed the State Bar and was sworn in as a Ventura County public defender.
For the last several years, De La Torre has volunteered as a mentor to teens. He also coaches the Oxnard High mock trial team, which placed second in last year’s county championships.
“I tell them, ‘If I can do it, then you can do it,’ ” he says.
His presence on the bench will reinforce that message, loud and clear. It’s a message many of Ventura County’s young people need to hear.