Devon Lomayesva is from the same community she’s worked in for the past 30 years, serving as chief judge at the Intertribal Court of Southern California, as in-house counsel for the Iipay Nation of Santa Ysabel (of which she is a member), and as an attorney with California Indian Legal Services and the California Indian Lands Office. Now, she steps into a new role — San Diego County Superior Court judge.
“…It is my childhood dream come true. I am so thankful for all those who ed me over my career and am proud to serve the County of San Diego,” she said. “As I enter this next chapter of my career, it is my hope that the experience and perspective I bring to the bench will enhance the court’s knowledge and practices for two areas of law—namely federal Indian law and tribal law, that have largely been paid little attention and often misunderstood.”
Her achievements throughout her career are considered worth celebrating by those who know her.
“To my knowledge, Judge Lomayesva is the first member of a California federally-recognized tribe to be appointed to the superior court in this state, and is the first California Native American to be appointed to the San Diego Superior Court, specifically,” said Christina Snider-Ashtari, an enrolled member of the Dry Creek Rancheria Band of Pomo Indians in Sonoma County, a lawyer whose focus is on tribal law and policy, and tribal affairs secretary to Gov. Gavin Newsom, leading the Office of Tribal Affairs. “The State of California is home to the largest population of Native American people in the nation. …There is so much value in having a judge who looks like the public she serves, who has lived a life that embodies both the Native American and San Diegan experience and who understands the nuances of Native American law and policy.”
With the awareness of the history of this country’s legal system and its relationship of violence and oppression against Indigenous peoples, Snider-Ashtari notes the significance of these kinds of appointments.
“This state and country’s justice system was not designed to protect Native women, children, families, and communities—in fact, early laws criminalized most Native practices, legalized the slavery and murder of Native people, and banned Native people from testifying against White people in court. The mere act of appointing a California Native woman to the bench is one small step to rectify these historical injustices, create space for our views, and respect our place in the fabric of California,” she said.
Lomayesva, 53, lives in North County with her husband, and has three children. She took some time to talk about her career, helping people navigate the legal system, serving tribal governments, and her goal to give people a fair and just experience in court.
Q: Congratulations on your appointment as a judge to the San Diego County Superior Court. I read that, when you were younger, you thought about becoming a teacher or an actress. Are you comfortable sharing what changed? What was happening in your family during the time you reconsidered the kind of career you wanted to pursue?
A: As I entered middle school, my family dynamics began to change, along with my perspective of where life can take you. My family, like many, had its challenges. In observing family enter the justice system, it showed me the value of legal representation. This was my motivation. As I entered my high school years and through junior college, I began to learn about American Indian legal history, which even furthered my resolve to learn about the United States justice system and be a voice for those who have not traditionally had access to justice.
Q: You were initially going to become a public defender? Why?
A: My desire to become a public defender was motivated by watching of my family go through the justice system. Their inability to understand the process and the lasting results on them from those experiences pushed me to strive to be an advocate for people who lacked the capacity or understanding to use their voice and be heard.
Q: What led you to become a judge?
A: In addition to my childhood goal to become a lawyer and a judge, I was able to briefly be a part of my tribe’s effort to work with several other tribes to develop an intertribal court system. This was an extraordinary opportunity for the local tribal governments to exercise their authority to govern their own and lands. I incorporated the development of tribal justice systems into my law practice and presented routinely across the state while working alongside tribal, federal, state, and local leaders. Years later, after the intertribal court system was up and running, I was presented the opportunity to apply as a pro tempore judge of the Intertribal Court of Southern California. After serving as a pro tem for about 18 months, the chief judge position opened and I applied and was appointed. I was the first Native American and first woman to lead the Intertribal Court. I served for eight and a half years.
What I love about North County…
I was born and raised in San Diego and have lived all over the county. San Diego is home to a very diverse population with amazing scenery from the beach to the mountains with a rich and proud history.
Q: What are your goals in your new position?
A: My first goal is to utilize my career experiences and expertise to contribute to the fair and just resolution of matters that come before the justice system within San Diego County. It is also my goal to provide contributions to the ongoing education and professional development of the bench in current areas of need specific to San Diego, including those that are not regularly addressed. Of particular interest is educating the bar on the intersection of federal Indian law and tribal law with the many other areas of law they touch, including family, probate, juvenile justice, and dependency, among others.
Q: In your bio from the Federal Bar Association’s San Diego chapter, you say, “A lot of my time outside the law is spent giving lectures and educating on tribal government and essentially demystifying tribes and some of the common assumptions about tribes.” What are some examples of common assumptions people have about tribes? And, what are ways you’ve been able to successfully correct those assumptions?
A: Most often people do not understand that tribes are functioning governments with inherent sovereignty to govern their own affairs. They do not understand that tribes can develop their own laws and justice systems or impose taxes upon their and visitors. Within the legal community, many lawyers and judges are not aware of how federal Indian law and tribal law intersect with various laws that, as practitioners and judicial officers, are addressed every day. By participating in webinars and other educational opportunities, I will utilize those opportunities to share my experiences and answer as many questions as possible.
Q: You’re working on putting together a dictionary documenting your tribe’s language, Iipay Aa? How did this project get started? How’s it coming along?
A: This project came about as part of my lifelong commitment to preservation of the Iipay language. Language revitalization efforts in the local tribal communities have increased over the last 20 years, as it has been identified that our local languages are in jeopardy of becoming extinct. In speaking with a couple of speakers from my tribe, we decided a dictionary specific to the Santa Ysabel Reservation would be a vital first step in the collective efforts to preserve local languages. The efforts continue and a lot of progress has been made. Next steps are working with linguists to develop an orthography and arrange the dictionary.
Q: Are there things you’ve learned through this process of documenting language that have surprised you?
A: It’s been interesting to learn the regional differences in the larger Iipay language speaking communities in San Diego. Each reservation is unique in its adaptation of the larger Iipay/Kumeyaay language family spoken throughout San Diego and beyond. Many of these differences appear to be based on the local environment and specific customs and traditions of each reservation.
Q: What’s been rewarding about your work?
A: My work has been directed to helping people navigate the legal system. Serving tribal governments and people has been at the forefront of my previous legal and judicial career. As I take on my new role in the Superior Court, I am confident that this prior experience will have provided me the skills to have a greater understanding of the unique needs of the many persons from all walks of life that find themselves in the state court system. At the end of the day, my hope is that the people that I interact with feel that they were heard and that their court experience was fair and just.
Q: What has your work taught you about yourself?
A: My work has taught me that we each have the power to make a difference by the choices and decisions we make on a day-to-day basis. The legal system is a scary thing to most people because they are not familiar with it and largely only come to court when something unfortunate has occurred. I have learned that we are all human and it is ok to show empathy and comion in this field, even when making the toughest of decisions.
Q: What is the best advice you’ve ever received?
A: That as a judicial officer, you should always strive to be honest, fair, and kind to everyone that comes before you. This, in turn, will create a belief in and respect for our system of justice.
Q: What is one thing people would be surprised to find out about you?
A: During middle school I was a baton twirler. I did this for about four years and marched in countless parades and competitions all over San Diego and beyond. One of my fondest memories was marching in the Mother Goose Parade in El Cajon in the mid-1980s.
Q: Please describe your ideal San Diego weekend.
A: San Diego always has something exciting going on. It’s always fun to get up early to go enjoy a coffee near the ocean and then do some shopping at one of our favorite home stores. Winding up the day at home working in the yard with the family is ideal.
