ATTORNEY GENERAL DAN LUNGREN: Biography
TOUGH ON CRIME WITH A VISION FOR A SAFER TOMORROW

Dan Lungren is California's twenty ninth Attorney General. By the
California Constitution. His duties and responsibilities are, aside from
those of the governor, the most important of any elected official in
California.

Since taking office, Attorney General Lungren has made good on
his pledge to escalate the war on crime, gangs. drugs and public
corruption. He has been equally vigilant in employing the law to protect
consumers, the environment and civil rights.

Dan's success as California's Top Cop follows a distinguished
congressional career, marked by singular achievements in the area of
crime. Notably, he was personally responsible for passage of the
Comprehensive Crime Control Act, which included benchmark provisions for
tougher sentencing, asset forfeiture in drug cues, pre trial detention
for violent offenders and victim compensation and assistance Dan also
authored the Child Safety and Identification Act. was a major sponsor of
the federal Anti Drug Acts of 1986 and 1988, and played a leading role in
the Victims Rights Act and the extension of the death penalty to more
crimes. Additionally, he was an early leader on the national level in the
effort for comprehensive immigration reform.

As California's Attorney General, Dan has solidified his record
as a crime fighter. Under his leadership, California carried out its
first execution in 23 years. He successfully fought for legislation
protecting the death penalty from legal challenge. And he has led efforts
at the state and national levels to limit endless appeals of death
penalty sentences.

Recognizing the dangers posed by gang members and other "young
guns", Dan has given California its first comprehensive anti gang
package, with proposals ranging from greater prevention up front to
tougher penalties, such as trying 14 and 13 year old murder suspects as
adults, and increased penalties for drive by shooters. His agents at the
Department of Justice have arrested thousands of drug traffickers and
seized record amounts of illegal narcotics. Dan has also defended the war
on drugs against renewed drug decriminalization efforts.

Working to help Californians take back their communities, Dan is
the first attorney general in the nation to develop a plan for community
based policing, to unite law enforcement and law abiding citizens in the
fight against crime. He has also developed a safe schools strategy,
including the establishment of gun free, gang free and drug free zones
around schools, and the use of metal detectors at the most violent schools.

Earlier in his career, Dan Lungren served as staff member in the
U.S. Senate and the Republican National Committee, and as a practicing
attorney in Southern California. He is a graduate of the University of
Notre Dame and Georgetown University Law School, and attended the
University of Southern California Law School.

Attorney General Lungren and his wife Bobbi have three children
and live in Roseville, California.

___________

return to the main page

The material included in this voter guide is archived and will not be updated. Please visit the California Voter Foundation's homepage for the most current information and resources.

© California Voter Foundation 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997 & 1998