New Merced County District Attorney takes office. Here are her top priorities

Merced County’s new District Attorney Nicole Silveira was officially sworn into office Monday, taking the reins as the county’s top prosecutor.

Surrounded by friends and supporters like Merced County Sheriff Vern Warnke, Silveira took the oath at the Merced County Courthouse Museum.

“Today as I take this oath, I am honored and humbled to serve as the leader of the Merced County District Attorney’s Office,” said Silveira. She went on to say “as your District Attorney, my responsibility to justice extends beyond the courtroom and into the community to make sure that we build a safe home for all citizens of Merced County.”

During the June primary election, Silveira defeated her boss, then-incumbent District Attorney Kimberly Helms Lewis for the seat, garnering nearly 70% of votes cast in her favor compared to Helms Lewis’ 30%.

Silveira is a longtime prosecutor who has worked in the Merced County District Attorney’s Office since 2010.

She was promoted to supervising district attorney by then-District Attorney Larry Morse II, making her the first woman to hold a management role in that office. In 2015 she was named Merced County’s Prosecutor of the Year, the first woman to win that award.

“Short term I would like to make sure that I communicate with my staff as best as possible,” said Silveira. “One of my goals was to meet with every single member of my office one-on-one and it’s something I’ve already been able to start doing and they have such great ideas so I’m really excited to work with them collaboratively to improve our office.”

Long term, Silveira said she would like to expand educational services into the high schools and be proactive and supporting law enforcement analysts to help the rising number of homicides in the county.

A native of Atwater, Silviera worked for many years as a gang prosecutor. Her election platform included prioritizing crime perpetrated against Merced’s farmers; strengthening relationships with law enforcement; creating a family justice center to advocate for vulnerable crime victims; and expanding the county’s school attendance review board, which holds parents accountable for minor students’ truancy from school.

Silveira graduated from Atwater High School before attending Merced College and San Diego State.

She earned her law degree at California Western School of Law in San Diego. She worked in private practice before joining the District Attorney’s Office in 2010.