Ron Freitas, ‘88, is a career prosecutor and current District Attorney of San Joaquin County. He was the Assistant District Attorney, the Chief Deputy District Attorney of the Homicide and Gang Divisions, and the Supervising Deputy District Attorney of the Gang Violence Suppression Unit. 

Throughout his career, Ron tried numerous gang-related murders and violent felonies. In San Joaquin County, he was the first to use DNA evidence after a scientific admissibility hearing and tried the first two dual-jury trials. He was also the first to use a gang special circumstance to obtain a death sentence.  He supervised the first gang-related wire surveillance operation. He is a co-founder of the San Joaquin County Gang Violence Prosecution Task Force, and the founder of the San Joaquin County Homicide Task Force, San Joaquin County Evidence Task Force, and the San Joaquin County Grand Jury Task Force.  

As the Homicide Division Chief, he assisted in the investigation, charged and supervised the prosecution of over 150 murders, including the kidnap, rape, and murder of eight-year-old Sandra Cantu (2009), the Dalene Carlson kidnap and murder (2011), and the Bank of the West Bank robbery, felony-murders (2014). In 2012, he successfully argued to the California Supreme Court that autopsy reports are not testimonials in People v. Dungo (2012) 55 Cal.4th 608. 

Freitas has been published by the Pacific Law Journal, the California District Attorney’s Association, and the National District Attorney’s Association, and is a Chapter Author for the California Continuing Education of the Bar, Criminal Sentencing Enhancements manual.  

In 2019, Freitas was elected to a two-year term on the California District Attorneys Association Board of Directors. Freitas is a co-chair of the C.D.A.A. Gang Violence Suppression Committee. He is the Technical Advisor of the C.D.A.A. Gang Symposium and S.T.E.P. Act Prosecutions and is the Co-Technical Advisor of the Homicide Symposium. He was the Technical Advisor of the C.D.A.A. Intro to Gang Prosecutions and the Advanced Gang Prosecutions trainings. He first taught for C.D.A.A. in 1996. He has also taught for N.D.A.A., California Gang Investigator’s Association, law enforcement, schools, and community organizations, and he lectured at Boalt School of Law, U.C. Berkeley.  

In 2012, he was appointed as a Board Member of the Lodi Unified School District and re-elected in 2016 and 2020. He was elected President of the Board for 2015-2016 and 2020-2021. Freitas was an active member of the San Joaquin County 2×2 committee and the Legislative Committee. He was a co-founder and co-chairman of the LUSD Board Safety Committee and was a member of the Superintendent’s Budget Advisory Committee.  

In 2016, he was president of the Yes on Measure U campaign committee in which voters approved the issuance of $280 million in bonds for new construction and renovations in Lodi and north Stockton schools. He is a Past President of the Giving Opportunities to Kids (GOT Kids, 2019-2020) foundation which raises over $50 thousand annually for needy children to attend science camps and have a fuller educational experience. He was also a member of the California School Board Association and the San Joaquin County School Board Association.  

Freitas is the California District Attorneys Association Instructor of the Year for 2017, and the San Joaquin County Probation Officers Court Employee of the Year for 2018 and 2022. He is a graduate of McGeorge School of Law, where he was a member of the Pacific Journal Law Review, and California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. 

Throughout 2024, the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law will celebrate members of its vast alumni network in honor of the school’s 100-year anniversary. This post is part of a series highlighting 100 exceptional McGeorge School of Law alumni.  

Stay tuned for more blog posts as we celebrate the law school’s centennial anniversary. 

Thien Ho, ‘98, was elected District Attorney of Sacramento County in 2022, and officially took office in January 2023. Prior to the election, Ho served in executive management as the Sacramento County Assistant Chief Deputy D.A. over the Justice and Community Relations Bureau, which handles post-conviction litigation, training, community prosecution and media outreach. 

Over Ho’s 23-year career as an attorney, he successfully prosecuted sexual assault, gang, and homicide cases. He was the supervisor of the Gang and Hate Crime Unit and has personally charged and prosecuted hate crimes. Most notably, he successfully prosecuted the East Area Rapist/Golden State Killer, who committed 13 murders and over 50 sexual assaults in 11 different jurisdictions throughout California. Michelle McNamara wrote about the case in her book, “I’ll be Gone in the Dark.” The case has also been featured on CNN, HBO, 20/20 and countless news outlets across the world. 

Ho has previously taught for the California District Attorneys Association (CDAA) on “Voir Dire in Sexual Assault and Homicide Cases,” P.O.S.T instruction for peace officers and was an adjunct professor for trial advocacy at McGeorge School of Law. He helped to build a nationally ranked trial advocacy program at McGeorge, winning multiple regional and national mock trial competitions.  

Ho is the former Vice President of the National Asian Pacific Islander Prosecutors Association (NAPIPA)’s Northern California Chapter. In 2017, he was presented with both the NAPIPA and Sacramento District Attorney’s Office Prosecutor of the Year Award. 

Throughout 2024, the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law will celebrate members of its vast alumni network in honor of the school’s 100-year anniversary. This post is part of a series highlighting 100 exceptional McGeorge School of Law alumni.  

Stay tuned for more blog posts as we celebrate the law school’s centennial anniversary. 

Senior Justice James W. Hardesty graduated from the University of Nevada, Reno with a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting in 1970. While an undergraduate student, Hardesty was elected President of the student body and named outstanding senior graduate. Hardesty graduated from McGeorge School of Law in 1975 and immediately returned to the Reno/Sparks area to enter private practice. He remained in private practice from 1975 to 1998. He received the highest rating of AV by Martindale-Hubbell, a nationally recognized publication of lawyer ratings. Hardesty was born and raised in Reno, Nevada. He has been married for 52 years to his wife, Sandy, and together they have two children and five grandchildren. 

In November 1998, Hardesty was elected District Court Judge for the Second Judicial District of Washoe County, Reno, Nevada. In November 2001, he was elected by his fellow judges to serve as Chief Judge of the Second Judicial District Court, a position to which he was re-elected in November 2003. Hardesty also served as President of the Nevada District Judges Association in 2003. 

In November 2004, Hardesty was elected to the Nevada Supreme Court and was re-elected to the Court without opposition in 2010 and 2016. He served as Chief Justice of the Nevada Supreme Court in 2009, 2015, 2021, and 2022, retiring in January 2023. In 2014, he led the Nevada Supreme Court’s educational effort to amend the Nevada Constitution to create a Court of Appeals, which the voters approved in the November election. Nevada’s Court of Appeals commenced on January 5, 2015. Hardesty has been a guest lecturer on case management, settlement, and evidence for the National Judicial College.  

As a District Court Judge and as a Nevada Supreme Court Justice, he has served on numerous Supreme Court Commissions including: the Nevada Supreme Court Task Force to create a Business Court in Nevada; the Nevada Supreme Court Task Force studying the Multi-Jurisdictional Practice of Law; the Nevada Supreme Court Commission on Judicial Funding; the Nevada Supreme Court Committee to Implement Recommendations of the Jury Improvement Commission; the Commission on Statewide Juvenile Justice Reform; and the Nevada Supreme Court Bench-Bar Committee. Hardesty chaired or co-chaired the Nevada Supreme Court Access to Justice Commission; the Nevada Supreme Court Permanent Guardianship Commission; the Committee to Study Evidence-Based Pretrial Release; the Commission on Statewide Rules of Criminal Procedure; the Commission on Preservation, Access, and Sealing of Court Records; the Commission to Study the Adjudication of Water Law Cases; and the Commission to Study Best Practices for Virtual Advocacy in Nevada’s Courts. He has also chaired the Nevada Legislature’s Advisory Commission on the Administration of Justice; and is the chair of the Nevada Sentencing Commission. Hardesty is a past member of the Nevada State-Federal Judicial Council, serving as chairman from 2009 to 2011 and again from 2014 to 2016. 

Throughout 2024, the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law will celebrate members of its vast alumni network in honor of the school’s 100-year anniversary. This post is part of a series highlighting 100 exceptional McGeorge School of Law alumni.  

Stay tuned for more blog posts as we celebrate the law school’s centennial anniversary. 

The Hon. Barbara Kronlund, ’89, is a distinguished figure in the legal community, recognized for her significant contributions and achievements. Graduating with distinction from McGeorge School of Law in 1989 and earning a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology cum laude from Pepperdine University, her academic prowess laid the foundation for her remarkable career. 

Judge Kronlund made history as the first South Asian American female judge in California on both the state and federal benches, and was appointed to the Superior Court of San Joaquin County by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in April 2005. 

Throughout her tenure, Judge Kronlund has served in various capacities, including presiding over the Juvenile Court and assuming roles as a supervising civil judge and court commissioner. Before her appointment to the bench, she held positions as a deputy district attorney in Sacramento and San Joaquin Counties, specializing in cases involving child abuse and sexual assault. 

Judge Kronlund’s commitment to judicial education and cultural awareness has earned her recognition, including awards such as the Judicial Council’s Kleps Award and the American Board of Trial Advocate’s “Judge of the Year” and was named as the first recipient of the Excellence in Civic Engagement Award from the California Judges Association and California Lawyers Association.  

In addition to her judicial duties, Judge Kronlund has been active in community service and outreach. Notable initiatives include the establishment of the Women Lawyers Section of the County Bar Association, as well as programs aimed at assisting homeless individuals and veterans in San Joaquin County. 

As a member of various judicial committees and boards, including the California Judges Association, Judge Kronlund has played a significant role in shaping judicial ethics and education. Her contributions have been acknowledged with awards such as the Civility Award from Cal-ABOTA and the Community Service Award from the Unity Bar of Sacramento.

Throughout 2024, the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law will celebrate members of its vast alumni network in honor of the school’s 100-year anniversary. This post is part of a series highlighting 100 exceptional McGeorge School of Law alumni.  

Stay tuned for more blog posts as we celebrate the law school’s centennial anniversary. 

The career of Jose Hermocillo, ‘83, spans decades in the fields of government relations, public affairs, and strategic communications. He has been at the center of dozens of high-profile ballot measure campaigns and legislative and regulatory debates on issues ranging from healthcare and workers’ compensation to natural resources and taxation. 

After graduating with distinction from Pomona College’s government department in 1976, Hermocillo was one of six individuals selected statewide to participate in the State Senate’s Fellowship Program. After finishing the fellowship program, he was hired to work for the State Senate’s labor committee as an associate consultant. Two years later he left to work as a lobbyist in the State Capitol. During this time, he attended McGeorge School of Law and graduated in 1983, winning top honors in Moot Court Competition and serving on the Moot Court Honors Board. A year later he received a certificate in trial and appellate advocacy from UC Hastings College of the Law and joined a civil litigation law firm.   

Because of his passion for politics and policy, he pursued a career in public affairs. After a four-year stint as an independent consultant, he became a partner in one of California’s top political consulting and public affairs firms. In 1996, he helped open an office in the Sacramento market for APCO Worldwide, a global public affairs and strategic communications agency. He managed that office for two decades, during which time he was promoted to executive director and served on its senior management team for North America. During his tenure, APCO became one of the top PR agencies in the Sacramento market.     

In 2016, Hermocillo co-founded Hermocillo-Azevedo Strategic Communications to specialize in policy, crisis, and litigation communications. The firm added a third partner in 2020 and changed the firm’s name to Integrated Communications Strategies. The firm continues to help corporate, public, and nonprofit entities influence public policy outcomes and protect their reputations during times of crisis and transition. The firm also provides strategic planning services to solve complex economic development challenges.  

In 2007, PR News, the industry’s leading national publication, recognized Hermocillo as “Public Affairs Executive of the Year.” He also has twice been named one of the most influential people in the region by Sacramento Magazine. 

Hermocillo currently serves on the Dean’s Cabinet for McGeorge School of Law and the boards of directors for the Sierra Health Foundation and the Center for Sierra Health Foundation, which promote health, racial equity and racial justice in communities throughout the state. He also has served on numerous boards, including Valley Vision, Umpqua Bank/Holdings Corporation, and Capital Public Radio. Hermocillo is a senior fellow of the Mt. Valley Chapter of the American Leadership Forum. In his spare time, Hermocillo plays trumpet with bands in the Sacramento area. 

Throughout 2024, the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law will celebrate members of its vast alumni network in honor of the school’s 100-year anniversary. This post is part of a series highlighting 100 exceptional McGeorge School of Law alumni. 

Stay tuned for more blog posts as we celebrate the law school’s centennial anniversary. 

When Anna Frostic, ‘06, came to McGeorge School of Law, she traded researching in laboratory settings for practicing law. With a background in physical and biological anthropology, Frostic has always been passionate about protecting animals, especially through wildlife conservation. Now, she helps countless animals through her career in animal protection litigation. 

For 13 years, Frostic has worked at the Humane Society, which is a nonprofit that promotes ending animal cruelty in the United States and internationally. Initially, Frostic worked as an attorney, eventually the senior attorney, in Wildlife and Research at the Humane Society of the United States. 

In this position, Frostic was involved in litigation at the state and federal levels. She petitioned administrative agencies for regulatory and policy changes. She also worked to draft and review new legislation and helped to defend this legislation when it was challenged in lawsuits. 

Currently, Frostic is the Senior Vice President of Programs and Policy for the Humane Society International, overseeing all of Asian global programs and policy work. She engages directly with staff internationally to promote animal protection through legislative policy campaigns, corporate outreach, and direct care of animals. 

Frostic has many professional accomplishments, but one of the successes she is most proud of early in her career is eliminating a loophole in the federal law that allowed chimpanzees to continue to be subjected to invasive biomedical research. In fact, because of her work, the United States has not engaged in basic biomedical research on chimpanzees since 2015. 

Frostic has also been involved in working to end trophy hunting. In the United States, Frostic filed multiple lawsuits to prohibit the United States Fish and Wildlife Service from issuing permits to allow trophy imports of African lions. Frostic has worked in this issue at the international level as well, pressuring the South African government to prohibit the entire industry of captive breeding of lions. Through her and the Human Society’s efforts, the South African government recently issued a policy document paving the way for phasing out that industry. 

Throughout 2024, the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law will celebrate members of its vast alumni network in honor of the school’s 100-year anniversary. This post is part of a series highlighting 100 exceptional McGeorge School of Law alumni.  

Stay tuned for more blog posts as we celebrate the law school’s centennial anniversary. 

A native Sacramentan, Thomas Hiltachk (’87) graduated from the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law in 1987 where he was a Law Review editor and author and a member in the Order of the Coif. Later, Hiltachk served on the Board of McGeorge’s Capital Center for Law and Policy.

He is the managing partner at Bell, McAndrews & Hiltachk, LLP., where Hiltachk has practiced political and election law since 1988. He has served as legal counsel and treasurer to numerous statewide and local ballot measure committees, political action committees, lobbyists, trade associations, candidates, and officeholders.  

Hiltachk served as legal counsel for the campaign behind Proposition 184, also known as the Three Strikes Law, in 1994. He was also a legal counsel for the successful campaign to recall Gov. Gray Davis in 2003. In the 2000s, he was lead counsel for Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. Hiltachk has previously served as general counsel to the California Republican Party.

Hiltachk has appeared before the California Supreme Court and Courts of Appeal on several occasions and has twice been named a “Top 100” lawyer in California by the Daily Journal (2017 and 2019). He served as an official U.S. election observer for the 1996 Russian Presidential election, as President of the California Political Attorneys Association (2004 – 2005) and as a Board member of the American Association of Political Consultants.   

Throughout 2024, the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law will celebrate members of its vast alumni network in honor of the school’s 100-year anniversary. This post is part of a series highlighting 100 exceptional McGeorge School of Law alumni. 

Stay tuned for more blog posts as we celebrate the law school’s centennial anniversary.