Donna Tryfman, a deputy public defender in the Los Angeles County Public Defender's Office, seeks a seat on the Superior Court bench, Office 131. The nonpartisan race is on the Nov. 3 general election ballot.
David Ross is also running for the seat.
Asked why she is running, Tryfman said in our candidate questionnaire that she believes "public service is about showing up, listening carefully, and making sure that the people who depend on our public institutions are treated with fairness, dignity, and respect." She added, "I am running to be Everyone's Judge---one who will rule without fear or favor."
Candidate information
Party affiliation: "Registered Democrat," Tryfman said in our questionnaire. The race is nonpartisan.
Education: "Brandeis University: BA in English & American Literature, Minor in Legal Studies" and "University of La Verne School of Law: JD," Tryfman said in our questionnaire.
Family: "I am the daughter of immigrants and the child of Holocaust survivors," Tryfman said in our questionnaire. "My parents came to America carrying the experience of what happens when people lose the protection of law and institutions."
She added, "I am also a widow and single mother."
Experience and public service
Occupation and work history: Tryfman said in our questionnaire that she "joined the Los Angeles County Public Defender's Office in 1998 to pursue indigent trial advocacy."
She said, "For more than 30 years, I have been a trial lawyer, handling increasingly complex cases and trying more than 100 trials, including serious and violent felonies. I currently handle homicide and capital litigation."
She said she "served as Deputy-in-Charge at Eastlake Juvenile Court" from 2016 to 2019, "supervising approximately 25 attorneys and staffing collaborative drug court." She also said she "served as President of the Public Defenders Association from 2015–2020" and "received the 2025 Gideon Award for Felony Attorney of the Year."
Tryfman has been endorsed by the LA Daily News editorial board and the Metropolitan News-Enterprise editorial board, according to those publications.
On the issues
Trial experience and judicial temperament: Asked what her trial career taught her about serving as a judge, Tryfman said, "A judge must ensure both sides are heard, rules are applied fairly, and decisions are based on law and facts—not personalities, politics, public pressure, or emotion."
She said her motto is "be prepared, prompt, and polite. A judge must know the law, understand the record, listen carefully, make timely decisions, and keep proceedings moving while protecting everyone's rights."
Court accessibility: Asked how judges can make proceedings more understandable, Tryfman said, "It starts simply: speak to people in language they understand."
She added, "Accessibility means providing interpreters, disability accommodations, understandable materials, and alternatives for people without internet."
Court backlog: Asked about the biggest challenges facing the court, Tryfman said, "The greatest challenge facing our courts is the backlog. Justice delayed is not an abstract problem—it is a human one."
She said judges should address this through "mediation, technology, improved scheduling, and better coordination," while cautioning, "Efficiency cannot mean moving people through court faster. The goal is not to process cases. The goal is to deliver justice."
Tryfman's responses come from a Surround Sound News candidate questionnaire completed Oct. 2, 2026.
