Controversial attorney appointed SLO County judge

December 22, 2017

Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today announced the appointment of Matt Guerrero to a judgeship in the San Luis Obispo County Superior Court. Guerrero, a supporter of SLO County Supervisor Adam Hill, participated on social media pages that demean women and attack those who question Hill’s actions.

Guerrero, 47, of Oceano, was on the pathway to a judgeship in 2016. At the time, he was affiliated with a criminal investigation into John Wallace, a man charged with four felony and two misdemeanor counts of conflicts of interest, and Guerrero was passed over for several other candidates.

During his time on the boards of the Oceano Community Services District and the South San Luis Obispo County Sanitation District, Guerrero voted in support of many of Wallace’s questionable actions and verbally condemned several people who asked the district attorney to investigate Wallace.

According to the California Constitution, the governor makes temporary judge appointments until the next election, at which time the appointee must run for office.

There are currently eight seats on the local bench up for election in 2018. Five of the seats are governor appointed temporary judgeships that will become permanent if the appointees win the seats in the 2018 election.

Guerrero has been a sole practitioner since 2002. He was a contract attorney for the California Parole Advocacy Program from 2005 to 2011 and for Maguire and Ashbaugh as a public defender from 2002 to 2017.

Guerrero earned a Juris Doctor degree from the University of San Diego School of Law and a Bachelor of Arts degree from California State University, San Bernardino. He fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge John A. Trice. Guerrero is a Democrat.

Total compensation for the position is $200,042. Guerrero is a Democrat.