Lauri Damrell and David Sapp have been nominated by Gov. Gavin Newsom to serve as associate justices in the 3rd Appellate District, which hears cases in Sacramento.
Governor’s Office
Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday nominated Lauri Damrell and David Sapp to serve as associate justices in California’s 3rd Appellate District, which hears cases in Sacramento.
Damrell has served as a judge in the Sacramento Superior Court since 2018, and is an adjunct professor at Lincoln Law School and visiting lecturer at UC Davis. She previously worked in private practice and served as a Sacramento County deputy district attorney in 2014, according to a news release from the Governor’s Office.
Sapp became Newsom’s Legal Affairs Secretary in 2022, according to the Governor’s Office, after joining the governor’s staff in 2019. Before that, he served as deputy policy director and assistant legal counsel at the California State Board of Education. He is a resident of Napa County.
Damrell will take the place of retired Justice Elena J. Duarte, while Sapp will replace Justice Ronald Robie when he retires in January.
The 3rd District Court of Appeal has jurisdiction over 23 counties, including El Dorado, Sacramento, Placer and Yolo.
The positions require confirmation by the Commission on Judicial Appointments, which consists of Chief Justice Patricia Guerrero, Attorney General Rob Bonta and Senior Presiding Justice Francis Rothschild.
Damrell and Sapp are among eight appellate justices nominated Friday by Newsom. The governor also appointed nine superior court judges — seven in Southern California, and interim appointments in Sonoma and San Francisco counties.
Since the start of 2026, Newsom has made at least 73 superior court appointments and 17 court of appeals nominations, as he moves to fill judicial vacancies before the end of his term in January.
The Sacramento Bee
Haley Parsley is the acting Folsom and El Dorado Hills watchdog reporter for The Sacramento Bee. She holds a master’s degree in journalism from the University of Maryland, where she was a fellow at the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism. While there, she reported on immigration policy in the state. She has previously reported in Oklahoma City.