Frances Muñoz, first Latina trial judge in California, dies at 92
Frances Muñoz, the first woman to be appointed as a trial judge in California, has died. The 71-year-old was remembered on Saturday as “a trailblazer, philanthropist and advocate for the dignity of women.”
Muñoz was appointed in 1978 by Gov. Jerry Brown as a member of the civil jury panel for the county of Los Angeles because of her work as a volunteer at a juvenile clinic.
She was one of only three women on the panel appointed by Brown. She won praise from the civil rights and legal community for her work.
Muñoz served as a trial court judge for 22 years. She was elected in 1980 to the state Judicial Council and served on the state Judicial Council until 2002 when she became the chief justice of the California Supreme Court.
“Frances Muñoz was a trailblazer who built a better legal system in California,” Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement. “She was an exceptional judge who cared deeply about justice, and an exceptional person who always gave her best to help people.”
Muñoz, who came to Los Angeles from the Dominican Republic as a child, died Saturday, officials said. She was 92.
“Justice Frances Muñoz, of Los Angeles, CA, who served as a judge for 22 years, passed away on Saturday, June 1, 2019. She was a trailblazer, philanthropist and advocate for the dignity of everyone,” said Governor Gavin Newsom. “Frances Muñoz was a force in the Los Angeles community, who made sure that everyone had access to justice, and became a role model for many others. We will miss her deeply.”
Muñoz was born in La Habana, the capital of Spanish-speaking Cuba. Her family immigrated to the U.S. when she was 10 years old, settling in Los Angeles County in the 1920s.
A few years after graduating from high school, she entered the University of Southern California. She later married her first husband, an attorney who was also a judge. He died in 1987. She then became the first mother of two children to enter private law school, and the first Latina at UCLA Law School.
In the early ’60s, she moved to Washington