Midterm Update

photography: William Ceriale

Midway through his first term as Seattle City Attorney, Pete knows that a second term is crucial to fully implementing the reforms he pledged to voters: transparency, accountability, and fairness.

Since taking office in January 2010, Pete has:

• Stopped prosecution of simple possession of marijuana cases
• Ended one law firm’s monopoly contract for police legal services
• Reduced, by one day, the maximum sentence for misdemeanor crimes that triggered automatic deportation of legal immigrants
• Helped ensure Seattle won't build a new jail it can’t afford
• Provided a direct link to all Law Department consultant contracts

Pete’s solutions come from the community he lives and works in. He visits Seattle neighborhoods week in and week out to work on innovations to reduce crime (now at a 55-year low) and improve the quality of life for all. 

Seattle’s Seward Park has been home to Pete, his wife Ann and children Natalie and Paul for 25 years. He practiced business law before entering public service as a member, then chairman, of the Police Department’s Office of Professional Accountability Review Board. He was born in Buckingham County, Virginia, the middle of five sons brought up on a farm. He graduated from Yale University and the University of Virginia Law School.