David G Sills

He's not sure why, but Orange County Superior Court Judge David G. Sills seems to have a habit of falling prey to mistaken identity. A former Irvine mayor, Sills said that even today he is sometimes confused with a mayoral successor who shot his wife a few years back. When introduced as a one-time mayor of Irvine, Sills makes a point of stressing to inquisitive strangers that he is not "that mayor."

Judge David G. Sills, presiding justice of California's 4th District Court of Appeal in Santa Ana who made significant rulings regarding surrogate parents, died Tuesday after a long illness, the court announced. He was 73. Sills was appointed presiding judge of the appellate court's 3rd Division in 1990 by then-Gov. George Deukmejian and served for more than 20 years. In that role the judge led reviews of civil and criminal decisions handed down by Orange County Superior Court. Known as a consensus builder and a gifted writer, he was the author of more than 2,400 majority opinions during his tenure at the busy court.

Superior Court Judge David G. Sills, a former mayor of Irvine, was appointed by Gov. George Deukmejian on Tuesday to the prestigious post of presiding justice of the 4th District Court of Appeal in Santa Ana. Sills' appointment to the state appellate court is subject to confirmation by the Commission on Judicial Appointments. No date has been set yet for that hearing. If confirmed, Sills would replace Harmon G. Scoville, who retired from the presiding justice's position April 1.

Superior Court Judge David G. Sills, a former mayor of Irvine, was appointed by Gov. George Deukmejian on Tuesday to the prestigious post of presiding justice of the 4th District Court of Appeal in Santa Ana. Sills' appointment to the state appellate court is subject to confirmation by the Commission on Judicial Appointments. No date has been set yet for that hearing. If confirmed, Sills would replace Harmon G. Scoville, who retired from the presiding justice's position April 1.

Judge David G. Sills, presiding justice of California's 4th District Court of Appeal in Santa Ana who made significant rulings regarding surrogate parents, died Tuesday after a long illness, the court announced. He was 73. Sills was appointed presiding judge of the appellate court's 3rd Division in 1990 by then-Gov. George Deukmejian and served for more than 20 years. In that role the judge led reviews of civil and criminal decisions handed down by Orange County Superior Court. Known as a consensus builder and a gifted writer, he was the author of more than 2,400 majority opinions during his tenure at the busy court.

Citing jury misconduct, an appellate court Thursday overturned the 1991 conviction of a San Juan Capistrano man on 12 felony counts of sexually molesting his two young daughters. The 4th District Court of Appeal ruled, 2 to 1, to order a new trial for Rafael Chavez Tena, 38, after it was learned that juror Margaret Jones improperly tried to sway jurors to convict Tena and did not notify the judge that she knew two other girls who had been sexually molested.

Orange County Municipal Court Judge John M. Watson will be elevated to the Superior Court, the governor's office announced Thursday. Watson, 46, of Huntington Beach was a Los Angeles County prosecutor for 19 years. He was appointed last year by Gov. George Deukmejian to Harbor Judicial District Municipal Court in Newport Beach. Watson will replace Judge David G. Sills, who was recently named to the 4th District Court of Appeal.

Arraignment is scheduled for Friday for former Irvine City Councilman C. David Baker, who is charged with forging the signature of an Orange County Superior Court judge on a $48,000 check written on the account of a local nonprofit foundation that Baker headed at the time. Baker allegedly wrote the check to himself June 2, during the final days of his unsuccessful bid for the Republican nomination in the 40th Congressional District, and signed it with Judge David G.

The nonprofit Irvine Health Foundation, which makes grants to health-related agencies in Orange County, has appointed University of California President Jack W. Peltason to its board of directors. Peltason, who became UC Irvine chancellor in 1984, became president of the nine-campus UC system on Oct. 1. He joins David G. Sills, presiding justice of the 4th District Court of Appeal, as one of the board's prominent members.

He's not sure why, but Orange County Superior Court Judge David G. Sills seems to have a habit of falling prey to mistaken identity. A former Irvine mayor, Sills said that even today he is sometimes confused with a mayoral successor who shot his wife a few years back. When introduced as a one-time mayor of Irvine, Sills makes a point of stressing to inquisitive strangers that he is not "that mayor."

Irvine Temporary Housing, a nonprofit organization that provides help to homeless families and individuals in Orange County, has received a $25,000 grant from the Irvine Health Foundation. The grant money will be used to provide dental care, physical exams, health care for newborns and emergency shelter, according to an announcement by David G. Sills, chairman of the foundation and a justice of the 4th District Court of Appeal.

An Orange County congressional candidate who placed a close second in the June 7 elections faces an allegation that he wrote an unauthorized $48,000 check on the account of a nonprofit foundation to cover campaign expenses. After being confronted with the allegation, C. David Baker was hospitalized for depression and exhaustion three days before the election, sources said this week.