San Diego City Attorney
# San Diego City Attorney

The San Diego City Attorney is an elected official in San Diego, California. The City Attorney serves as the city government's lawyer and as a criminal prosecutor for misdemeanor violations and infractions. The city attorney is elected for four years, and may serve up to two terms. The current city attorney is Mara Elliott. Predecessors include Jan Goldsmith (2008-2016), Mike Aguirre (2004-2008), Casey Gwinn (1996-2004), and John W. Witt (1969-1996). Ms. Elliott is the first woman, and first Latina, to serve as City Attorney for San Diego, California.

## Composition

The San Diego City Attorney's Office has four divisions.

* Civil Advisory Division
* Civil Litigation Division
* Criminal Division
* Community Justice Division

## List of City Attorneys

The following list shows San Diego City Attorneys since the incorporation of the City of San Diego. From 1852 until 1888 the City government was dissolved due to a bankruptcy and there was no official city attorney.

| City Attorney | Term start | Term end |
| - | - | - |
| Thomas W. Sutherland | 1850 | 1851 |
| James W. Robinson | 1852 | 1852 |
| Harry L. Titus | 1888 | 1888 |
| James P. Goodwin | 1889 | 1890 |
| William H. Fuller | 1891 | 1894 |
| Herbert E. Doolittle | 1895 | 1904 |
| William R. Andrews | 1905 | 1906 |
| George Puterbaugh | 1907 | 1909 |
| William R. Andrews | 1910 | 1913 |
| Terence B. Cosgrove | 1914 | 1919 |
| Shelley J. Higgins | 1919 | 1927 |
| James O'Keefe | 1927 | 1928 |
| Marvin W. Conkling | 1928 | 1931 |
| Frank H. Heskett | 1931 | 1931 |
| Clinton L. Byers | 1931 | 1936 |
| Dayton L. Ault | 1937 | 1941 |
| Jacob Weinberger | 1941 | 1941 |
| Dayton L. Ault | 1941 | 1942 |
| Clarence J. Novotny | 1943 | 1943 |
| Jean F. Du Paul | 1943 | 1961 |
| Alan M. Firestone | 1961 | 1963 |
| Richard J. Curran | 1963 | 1965 |
| Ed Butler | 1965 | 1969 |
| John W. Witt | 1969 | 1996 |
| Casey Gwinn | 1996 | 2004 |
| Mike Aguirre | 2004 | 2008 |
| Jan Goldsmith | 2008 | 2016 |
| Mara Elliott | 2016 | Incumbent |
