MARTINEZ — Three years after the former Contra Costa District Attorney was convicted of felony perjury in a plea deal, and sentenced to community service, probation, and fines, the case against him has reached its official end.
On Tuesday morning, a Contra Costa Superior Court judge confirmed that ex-DA Mark Peterson, 61, had completed his mandated community service, and closed the case against him. Peterson’s three-year probation term also expires this month.
Peterson was elected District Attorney in 2010, after a lengthy career as a prosecutor in the office. In late 2016, the California Fair Political Practices Commission revealed he had stolen roughly $66,000 from his own campaign fund over several years, and used the money for personal expenses. Six months later, in June 2017, the California Attorney General charged him with 13 felonies — grand theft, and 12 counts of perjury.
He resigned, pleaded no contest to perjury, and accepted the terms of his deal the same day. Since then, he has been disbarred for “crimes of moral turpitude” by the State Bar.
Tuesday’s hearing couldn’t have been more different from the atmosphere nearly three years ago, when Peterson resigned, accepted a felony conviction, and left the AF Bray Courthouse without speaking to reporters or the large crowd that congregated to watch the hearing. On Tuesday, there was no one in the courtroom gallery, and Peterson himself did not appear; his attorney confirmed by phone that Peterson’s community service was finished, and within seconds the hearing was over.
Several months after his 2017 conviction, Peterson had not completed his 250 hours of community service, according to court records. A Contra Costa judge ruled that he had until Tuesday to do so, a minute order from the hearing says.
Peterson was succeeded by current DA Diana Becton, who was elected in 2018, a year after the Board of Supervisors appointed her. She ran on a platform of criminal justice reform.
