Endorsement: Pete Murray is our choice for San Diego County Superior Court judge in Office No. 36

The editorial board operates independently from the U-T newsroom but holds itself to similar ethical standards. We base our editorials and endorsements on reporting, interviews and rigorous debate, and strive for accuracy, fairness and civility in our section. Disagree? Let us know.

In written Q&As with The San Diego Union-Tribune Editorial Board, the two candidates running to be the San Diego County Superior Court judge in Office No. 36 expressed confidence in the legal system and concern about the public’s faith in it. Both chief trial counsel and former criminal trial prosecutor Pete Murray and longtime county Superior Court Commissioner Peter Singer gave nuanced answers to a difficult question about rising distrust.

But Murray’s answer was a cut above. “All of us — lawyers, judges, law enforcement, citizens and even the media — need to address this decline,” he wrote.

In evaluating both candidates, the San Diego County Bar Association ranked Murray as “well qualified” and Singer as “qualified.” The San Diego Union-Tribune Editorial Board shares this view and endorsed Murray over Singer before the June primary election. We do so again for the Nov. 8 ballot.

Murray has unusually broad experience, having served in the county District Attorney’s Office, in the state Attorney General’s Office, in a high-profile international law firm and as the chief trial counsel for the Cage & Miles law firm. The range of his endorsements — from San Diego County’s district attorney, Summer Stephan, to its public defender, Randy Mize — also shows how respected he is for his fairness, demeanor and independence.

In his responses to two questionnaires, Murray came off as both pragmatic and thoughtful. “Good judges can ensure justice; bad ones destroy it,” he said, adding that “compassion, empathy and understanding” would guide him on the job. This was on display in his comments on disproportionately high county jail deaths: “This is a problem that we must all own: from those involved in law enforcement to the county Board of Supervisors to prosecutors, public defenders and the judicial branch. The system needs to do better, much better. We must all work together to ensure the health and safety of those who are lawfully detained by the legal system.”

In a question on how the legal system handles cases involving people with mental illnesses, he said in his career he had both prosecuted cases where mental illness was “suspected” and defended victims who were caught up in the legal system directly because of their mental health. He said that provides him with a “balanced perspective.”

Both candidates gave excellent answers to how they would keep personal biases out of their rulings, showing an introspection and impartiality essential to the judiciary, but generally, Murray’s answers were stronger. In a question about hate crimes, he noted that he is the only candidate in the race to have prosecuted hate crimes, and also touted the need to find ways to increase reporting and improve trust between law enforcement and the community. Both have experience. Murray’s seems broader.

His balance would serve him well on the bench, and serve the citizens of San Diego County well.

The San Diego Union-Tribune Editorial Board endorses Pete Murray for judge in San Diego County Superior Court Office No. 36.