Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: 05/21/07

Contact person(s):

Media Coordinator, Donna Edwards - 565-3099 Media Spokesperson, Assistant District Attorney Christine Cook

Santa Rosa, Sonoma County, California

DA HIRES CONSTITUTIONAL EXPERT AS APPELLATE ATTORNEY

District Attorney Stephan Passalacqua announced the hiring of William S. Mount, to head up the Office’s Writs, Appeals and Legal Research Unit. Mr. Mount joined the office May 8th and was sworn in as Deputy District Attorney on May 9, 2007.

"Mr. Mount brings extensive appellate experience with the California Supreme Court, the California Court of Appeals, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, experience which will complement the fine staff of trial attorneys in our office," said District Attorney Passalacqua. The D.A. added, "Deputy District Attorney Mount’s expertise will provide us with a first class appellate and research unit and complement our existing training program."

Deputy D.A. Mount’s appellate experience with the California Supreme Court spanned the years from 1989 to 2000. He served first as Chambers Staff Attorney to Justice Armand Arabian, and then as Chief of Staff to Justice Janice Rogers Brown. From 2000 to 2003, he was the Senior Chambers Staff Attorney for Justice Patricia Sepulveda at the California Court of Appeal. In these positions, he drafted proposed judicial opinions and related documents and supervised others in these duties.

Mr. Mount started his career as a Trial Attorney in constitutional and administrative law litigation with the United States Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. He was then employed as a staff attorney at the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, went into private litigation for a time, and practiced law in the Mariana Islands, a U.S. Commonwealth, where he served as the Deputy Attorney General and Special Counsel to the Lieutenant Governor at Saipan for treaty negotiations with the United States. Most recently, Mr. Mount was a panel member for the California Appellate Project."

Mount earned his Bachelor of Arts in History at the University of Michigan. He obtained his Juris Doctor at the University of Michigan School of Law.