Home

10%

CSUB served as ‘wonderful resource’ for Kern County judge

David Zulfa to be inducted into Alumni Hall of Fame

By California State University, Bakersfield

February 23^rd, 2026

Like many seniors, David Zulfa was ready to leave his hometown behind when he graduated from West High School in 1985.

“I'll be honest with you, I was not excited about going to Cal State Bakersfield,” he said. “Like many of us, I thought ‘oh, I’m going to go off and conquer the world. I’ll go away to a four-year college and never come back to Bakersfield.’ Little did I know that it was going to be the best thing that ever happened to me.”

Zulfa spent two years at the University of California, Los Angeles before deciding to transfer to California State University, Bakersfield and pursue a bachelor’s degree in communication.

“I came back as quickly as possible, recognizing that that was the spot for me,” he said. “Our life experiences are who we are, and Cal State Bakersfield has been a big part of my life experience.”

Zulfa graduated from CSUB in 1991 and earned his juris doctorate from the California Pacific School of Law in 1999. He went on to lead a decades-long law career that resulted in his 2014 appointment as a Kern County Superior Court judge.

Zulfa is being inducted into CSUB’s Alumni Hall of Fame this year in recognition of his accomplishments. The other inductees are retired California Chamber of Commerce President/CEO Jennifer Barrera, Migrant Education Director Janie Flores, Kern County Superintendent of Schools John Mendiburu and retired Kern Medical Center Chief Financial Officer Fred Plane.

The inductees will be honored at a ceremony at the Bakersfield Marriott on Feb. 26. Tickets for the ceremony are available here.

“It is a real honor to be recognized by people that you respect,” Zulfa said. “I know other judges have been honored in this Hall of Fame before me. Judge Jennifer Thurston and Judge Elizabet Rodriguez — to be recognized alongside people like that is very humbling. I know I got here because of so many other people.”

Zulfa’s younger brother Mike, who currently serves as superintendent of the Kern High School District, believes his brother is worthy of the recognition because he exemplifies all the qualities that CSUB looks for in its distinguished alumni.

“I think that he truly embodies the success stories that every educational institution hopes to produce,” he said. “This is somebody who champions the university, who continues to live in our community and has a huge impact in every aspect. It's not just because he's a judge; he does things that everybody can do. He’ll join a local church group. He’ll go serve a meal to the homeless. Anybody can do those things, and he chooses to do that. Dave is pretty much the model of what you want to have be the product of this university.”

Zulfa said he hopes that his induction into the Alumni Hall of Fame will serve as an inspiration to CSUB students.

“I hope that somebody will be inspired and perhaps encouraged to keep going, keep taking that next class until you finish, because believe me, you can do it,” he said. “If I can do it, anyone can do it. If I can get here and do things that people want to recognize, then others can do things that people are going to want to recognize and award.”

‘Beholden to justice’

Zulfa never thought he would go back to college once he graduated from CSUB in 1991. He was already moving on, having gotten a job in public relations at the Bakersfield escrow company Chicago Title. A conversation with Bob Malkin, a client who had previously been Zulfa’s boss at a restaurant he worked at while in college, led him to change his mind.

“He said to me ‘one day, you'd make a really good attorney,’ and my response was, ‘yeah, but I don’t think I'd be a good law student,’” Zulfa said. “I thought that was not very bold of me. It was not something that I wanted to have lingering in the future, so at that point, I made the decision to go to law school.”

Mike Zulfa said he and the rest of the family were initially surprised by the decision.

“Dave didn't necessarily have it all figured out just yet, but he was exploring life,” Mike said. “He does have a spirit of adventure about him, a willingness to try a lot of different things, to look into a lot of different avenues. I think he truly explored until he found his calling.”

Zulfa decided to hedge his bets by attending the local California Pacific School of Law in case he found law school to be too challenging or not to his liking. Those concerns turned out to be unwarranted.

“I figured if it didn't work out, it wasn't that big of an investment. Fortunately, it worked out and that was a great opportunity,” he said. “That was another great resource provided by local education, just like Cal State Bakersfield was a wonderful resource.”

After obtaining his degree in 1999, Zulfa spent two years working as an associate at the law firm Clifford and Brown before making the decision to join the Kern County District Attorney’s Office.

“I loved being a deputy D.A.,” Zulfa said. “I remember the day that Ed Jagels swore me in. I took my oath, and when I was done, he looked at me and he said, ‘now go do the right thing for the rest of your career,’ and I really took that to heart. Our job really was to go do the right thing. We were beholden to justice and to the people of Kern County, and that really inspired me.”

Zulfa handled a wide variety of cases during his 12-year career there, from petty thefts to high-profile murders. He was involved in over 80 jury trials and more than 200 juvenile hearings.

“There are so many cases that left an indelible mark on me. I was blessed to be given so many great opportunities in that office,” he said.

Mike Zulfa said he was impressed by his brother’s dedication to his work and his willingness to take on a large case load.

“He did not back down from the challenges. He set precedents in the way that he prosecuted cases for Kern County,” he said. “He was doing all of that even though it meant that he would spend eight hours in the courtroom every day. He would spend hours after the court adjourned getting ready for the next day, but then he also had a whole litany of cases on board that he had to be preparing as part of the next line of work. His willingness to take on the work speaks volumes for who he is.”

CSUB served as ‘wonderful resource’ for Kern County judge

An unexpected call

After years of working in the Kern County D.A.’s Office, Zulfa decided to throw his hat in the ring to serve on the Kern County Superior Court bench. After applying to the Governor’s Office and having his name in consideration for about five years, however, he began to think it was never going to happen.

“I had a very deep and long conversation with my wife about whether I was going to continue to pursue the bench, and we had decided that I was going to withdraw my name from consideration after the holidays. We had come to peace with it,” Zulfa said.

Then two days later, in December 2014, he got a call from the Governor’s Office. Rather than picking up the phone, he let it go to voicemail, assuming that they were calling to ask him about other candidates, which they had done in the past.

When he checked his voicemail, however, Zulfa realized this call was something different.

“I called and they gave me the news that Governor Brown had chosen me to fill Judge Louis Etcheverry’s seat on the bench,” he said. “I was grateful for not only the appointment, but to fill judge Etcheverry’s seat as well. It has meant the world to me. I had great respect for that man. Then I went and told my wife, and I’ve never looked back.”

When Mike Zulfa learned about the appointment, he felt it was a well-earned honor that acknowledged his brother’s contributions to the justice system in Kern County.

“It means that you're a really good attorney, and it means that you bring more to the table than just being a really good attorney,” he said. “When you're a prosecutor, you’re in the game. You're playing offense and defense, and now you're much more the umpire. You're trying to make sure that the things that happen within the courtroom are within the rules, so it's a huge shift.”

Zulfa has taken that responsibility seriously. He understands that his decisions significantly impact the lives of those who come before him.

“Every time that I'm asked to impose a sentence on somebody, I never lose the perspective that I am impacting someone's liberty,” he said. “You should always be mindful that your decisions as a judge have a great impact not only on that defendant but on the victims, upon the attorneys that have been involved and even the jurors that rendered that verdict and have followed the case through sentencing. If I ever lose sight of that, I think I'll need to determine whether it's time to move on.”

Zulfa said he strives to make sure that regardless of what his ruling is, defendants feel that they have had the opportunity to be heard and that they were treated fairly.

“When I first became a judge, somebody said to me, ‘never forget that you may be the only time somebody interacts with the justice system,’ and that’s the case for a lot of the people who appear in front of me,” he said. “I want them to feel like the justice system knows them, notices them and hears them. I try to respect everybody and ask for their respect in return. I think that if you do that — if you listen to people and you respect people — they will listen and respect you in return.”

Zulfa’s longtime friend Michael Bowers said that focus on fairness and respect has always been key to who Zulfa is.

“Two things that he has is the wisdom to listen and the courage to lead,” he said. “He does everything with grace and class. That's been one of the strengths that I've been able to glean from him — that humility and grace, which is so important.”

Mike Zulfa said his brother has been able to gain trust as a judge because of those qualities and his ability to quickly develop relationships with people.

“He's such a natural at making people feel like they have his attention, that he is focused on them and that they are the priority, even when he is juggling several cases. I think that helped him become a better prosecutor, and it helps him be a better judge,” he said.

A desire to give back

While his work responsibilities demand much of his time, Zulfa has always made supporting the community a priority. He has served on the boards of several organizations, including the Kern County Officials Association and the Court Appointed Special Advocates of Kern County Golf Tournament Committee.

Zulfa also helped establish the Fred Zulfa Memorial Scholarship in honor of his older brother, who died in 1992. The scholarship is awarded each year to West High School graduates to support their higher education journey. More than $300,000 in scholarships have been given out to a total of over 70 students since it was established in 2013.

“It's just a way to give back and to honor the memory of my brother,” Zulfa said. “It is one of the things I am most proud of, because I know the impact it has on these students. Many of those scholars stay right here in Bakersfield. Several of our scholars have gone on to Cal State Bakersfield.”

Zulfa has also had the opportunity to interact with students directly by serving as a presiding judge for the Kern County Mock Trial Competition. He has continued to engage with CSUB over the years by serving as a guest speaker on campus and providing advice to students.

Bowers said Zulfa can also often be found volunteering out in the community by handing out meals at the Mission of Kern County, among other efforts.

“He's always trying to find a way to power our community forward, to change the trajectory of our youth’s lives,” he said. “David does not need the limelight. He does not need to be seen. He just wants to slip in and help serve. This community’s better because of Judge Zulfa, but he’s more than just a judge.”

Zulfa said it’s important to him that he does what he can to support the community, as he’s received a lot of help and encouragement over the course of his career and personal life. He wants to pay that forward, especially when it comes to his mentorship of students.

“If I can provide even a moment of inspiration to somebody who's seeking to perhaps pursue the same career that I've pursued, I'm going to take that opportunity,” he said. “Maybe down the road, somebody will be getting inducted into the Alumni Hall of Fame and they'll say, ‘I became a lawyer because Judge Zulfa came into the courtroom when I was with my We The People class and spent five minutes talking to us.’ If I have even a small part, it’s the very least I can do to pay back all the people that have invested in me.”