August 15, 2005

Santa Clara Judge Enters DA's Race

The Recorder
By Julie O'Shea

SAN JOSE — It's back to a three-way race.

Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Dolores Carr is expected to announce at a press conference today that she's running for district attorney in 2006. She filed election papers with the county late Friday afternoon.

A court spokesman said Carr took a leave of absence from the bench, effective Thursday night, which will enable her to start raising money and hitting the campaign trail.

In a letter that went out to judges Friday, Carr said she will "announce her plans" at 12:15 p.m. today on the Old Courthouse steps. She couldn't be reached for comment Friday.

With the election still more than a year off, Carr will square off against two other announced candidates: Chief Assistant DA Karyn Sinunu, who has the endorsement of retiring DA George Kennedy, and Assistant DA Marc Buller.

Superior Court Judge Ron Del Pozzo pulled out of the race last week, less than a month after he took a leave from the bench to campaign.
Deputy DA James Shore, who has repeatedly said he's considering a bid, didn't return a call seeking comment Friday.

"This has been one of the most difficult decisions of my life," Carr wrote in a letter to her bench colleagues. "It has been an honor and a privilege to serve our community, and I have truly enjoyed working with all of you."

Though the letter wasn't quite a farewell, it may turn out that way. Carr's seat on the bench is also up for election next year, but she can't campaign for both jobs. If she stays in the DA race but loses, she'll also have lost her bench seat.

"She's having to give up her judgeship," said Robert Caughlan, Carr's political consultant. "It's quite a sacrifice, in a way."

Sinunu and Buller said they weren't surprised by Carr's decision.

" I guess it's what we've all been expecting. She's been out campaigning for quite some time," said Sinunu, who has raised more than $100,000 thus far.

"This is a morphing campaign," Sinunu added.

"I think [Carr] is an important candidate," Caughlan said. "Karyn Sinunu is the overdog, and Dolores is the underdog, and that's an OK position to be in."

Carr, who is married to a San Jose police lieutenant, spent 15 years as a prosecutor before winning election to the bench in 2000.

She's been presiding in family court since then, most recently overseeing "unified" family court, where she's mostly gotten good reviews.

She received her J.D. from the Southwestern University School of Law in 1980.

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