Who is Royl Roberts? Timeline for selecting interim Alameda County DA
OAKLAND, Calif. - Following the recall of progressive Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price, her next-in-line, Royl Roberts, was handed the torch to keep the office running.
On Monday, Roberts sat down with media outlets, including KTVU, to give brief interviews on why he believes he's the right person for the job.
One of the biggest pros, in his mind, is that he doesn't want to run for elected office in two years, he simply believes that with his managerial experience – even if he's never been a prosecutor – he can keep the office running without too many disruptions for the next two years. That's what he's done for the previous two years, involved in finance, IT and Human Resources of an office that has 430 employees and an annual operating budget of $100 million.
"I have absolutely no intention of running for this position in the election of 2026," he said candidly. "I see my role as someone who bridges the gap."
Roberts stressed that he didn't seek out this job, but he feels the organizational aspect of the position is his specialty.
He has already selected Jimmie Wilson, Catherine Kobal and Jim Meehan to serve as chiefs of prosecutions, which he touted have 83 years combined of prosecutorial experience.
Royl Roberts was selected to be an interim Alameda County District Attorney.
"If the board of supervisors wants someone to hold the ship steady and who knows the organization inside and out, I'm the person to do that," he said.
Roberts repeatedly emphasized that he is not Price; he's his own person and that he doesn't want to set any new agendas, or talk about prosecutorial philosophy.
"My role is not to reform the system," he said. "My job is to continue moving this office forward, prosecuting those who commit crimes in Alameda County."
As for following Price's progressive prosecutorial path?
"I would say we would need to take a look at that," he said. "We would need to see if those policies and programs made us more safe or less safe."
He also wouldn't discuss any particular case, such as whether he'd continue moving forward with charges Price filed against nine sheriff's deputies and two medical staff stemming from the in-custody Santa Rita Jail death of Maurice Monk.
None of the board of supervisors responded to whether they would let Roberts keep his job, and he said with a laugh that he's heard a number of candidates who want the position, without naming names.
The East Bay Times reported that several people may want to apply. They include: Annie Esposito, a former Alameda County prosecutor who is now a Contra Costa County assistant DA; Elgin Lowe, a senior Alameda County deputy DA who oversees the East County Hall of Justice in Dublin; Scott Tsui, a retired Santa Claray County prosecutor; Yibin Shen, Alameda's city attorney; and former Alameda County prosecutors Venus Johnson, who is now senior advisor to California Attorney General Rob Bonta; LD Louis, who is now a Alameda County deputy county counsel and Amilcar "Butch" Ford, now a San Francisco prosecutor.
Roberts used to clerk for Price and has been her chief assistant for two years.
Before coming to the DA's Office, Roberts worked for the Peralta Community College District as general counsel, and as special assistant to the chancellor.
He also was the director of operations for the Martin Luther King Jr. Freedom Center. He holds a law degree from the Golden Gate University School of Law.
Roberts said he's had plenty of experience working with Fortune 500 companies, so when people say he has no experience in his role, he asks, "Are they talking about someone else?"
The Board of Supervisors is meeting on Tuesday, where it's expected that they will adopt the following timeline for selecting an interim DA, who will hold the position until a new election is held in November 2026.
Here is the timeline being proposed:
- On Tuesday, the board of supervisors is expected to adopt the procedures for a timeline.
- On Wednesday, the application period opens. Candidates must fill out an application including a statement of interest and high priorities for the office.
- Applications will be due by 5 p.m. on Dec. 30. Within two days, the county clerk must make the applications publica at www.acgov.org.
- During the week of Jan. 6, finalists should be interviewed by the board.
- During the week of Jan. 13, the finalists will be publicly interviewed.
- On Jan. 16, the board will select the candidate.
- On Jan. 28, 2025, the new interim DA will be sworn in.
- The goal is to have the vacancy filled by Feb. 4, 2025.
- The next general election to vote for a DA is Nov. 3, 2026.
- The winner of that election would be expected to serve until the 2028 election, when Price’s first term was originally slated to end.