Two Prosecutors Named to County Superior Court

Gov. Gray Davis appointed two local veteran prosecutors Friday to six-year terms as judges on the Los Angeles County Superior Court, his office reported.

Richard Stone, a deputy district attorney since 1986, and Yvette Palazuelos, an assistant attorney in the U.S. attorney’s office since 1990, will assume the posts, said Hilary McLean, a spokeswoman for Davis.

For the last two years, Stone, 43, has prosecuted gang-related crimes as a member of the district attorney’s Hardcore Gang Unit. The 1998 Santa Monica Police Association’s “prosecutor of the year,” Stone was elected to the judicial post during the March primary election and was to take office in January. The appointment allows him to immediately become a judge, McLean said.

Palazuelos, 37, specializes in prosecuting large-scale narcotics traffickers and money launderers. She has won five special achievement awards from the U.S. Department of Justice and two certificates of appreciation from the Drug Enforcement Administration.