Receive Weekly Email and Text Message Updates:
Sign up for latest info on concerts, dining, promotions and more!
Go!

Best Judge

David O. Carter

Of the dozens of judges in Orange County, Carter stands in a class by himself. Perhaps that's why the former U.S. Marine (battle-tested against communist Vietnamese forces in Khe Sanh), prosecutor, municipal judge and Superior Court judge now serves as a federal judge sitting in the Ronald Reagan Courthouse in Santa Ana. There really isn't any other judge like Carter. He's tough on crime and bad lawyering. Sit in his courtroom, fittingly plush and patriotic, and you'll observe a man, grandfatherly in tone, who could treat defendants like items on a conveyor belt, but instead displays genuine interest in helping folks return to society as good citizens. He's no legal slouch, either. It's not a coincidence that Southern California's most complex criminal cases—the Aryan Brotherhood and Mexican Mafia trials, for example—land in his courtroom.

Best Of OC Search

Click here for Best Of Map

Best Of OC Issues - Previous Years

Latest Best Of OC User Comments

  • Best Place to Get Weed Delivered to Your Doorstep (1)
    2009-11-16 15:42:49
    I love this site!!
  • Best Open-Air Preacher (1)
    2009-11-09 12:05:55
    I'm pretty sure that is his real name.
  • Best Yoga Studio (4)
    2009-11-02 07:56:32
    This studio is unprofessional and poorly managed. The heater is so unbalanced that the temp can...
  • Best Pho (1)
    2009-10-17 01:58:29
    the pho thai is pretty good not greasy like the other places good service
  • Best Ice Cream (1)
    2009-10-17 01:57:04
    great selection of flavors service isnt the BEST love the decor; its like a old ice cream...

Best of Orange County 2009 Award Graphics