To the Editor:

Public safety is not just about the work of law enforcement.  When it comes to keeping our communities safe, we also need a court system that will take these cases and handle them in a professional and transparent way. Trial judges shape our community by making sure everyone is heard, including our victims, and that the process is fair and accountable. When it comes to choices for Superior Court, we must demand only the best the profession has to offer.  As your Snohomish County Sheriff, I strongly encourage you to vote to retain Judge Whitney Rivera.

Judge Rivera is an experienced judge – the only candidate in this race who is.  She was the Presiding Judge in the Edmonds Municipal Court for more than three years and is now one of our Superior Court Judges. She presides over serious and consequential cases every day. She is overwhelmingly respected by law enforcement, as evidenced by the endorsements she has received from the Snohomish County Deputy Sheriffs Association, the Deputy Prosecutors Association, our elected Prosecuting Attorney, Jason Cummings, and me, your elected Sheriff. All of the judges in Snohomish County have endorsed her, as have hundreds of attorneys, judges, and elected officials statewide.  These endorsements are not given lightly.  They are given by those who have a direct interest in the integrity of our judiciary.

I urge everyone to cast their votes for Judge Rivera by Nov. 5.

Sheriff Susanna Johnson
Snohomish County Sheriff