The SBDDAA is a group of approximately 40 Deputy District Attorneys who work together in Santa Barbara County to safeguard and serve the community.  All members of the association are full-time employees of the County and serve under the elected District Attorney.  In Santa Barbara County, the Deputy District Attorneys prosecute all felony and misdemeanors, aside from some municipal code violations handled by the City Attorney.    Deputy District Attorneys in Santa Barbara County must possess a juris doctorate, pass the California Bar Examination, and be in good standing with the State Bar.  The Deputy District Attorneys employed by Santa Barbara County are amongst the most highly dedicated, educated, and experienced professionals in the State.  Santa Barbara County Deputy District Attorneys are subjected to a lengthy and detailed background and security check, which ensure only the most ethical and upstanding applicants are selected for duty.  Our Deputy District Attorneys are responsible for criminal prosecution in the Superior Court of the State of California and appeals in the Court of Appeal, District Court and California Supreme Court.  A substantial number of cases go to trial in Santa Barbara County and the current defense tactics requires our prosecutors to have a mastery of all legal issues (i.e. search and seizure, expert witness and DNA).   A dedicated member of the SBDDAA is on call 24 hours a day/7 days a week to assist law enforcement and other government entity with any situation that arises.   However, much of the work that our Deputy District Attorneys handle is not known to the general public such as: (1) training law enforcement personnel on legal issues; (2) reviewing search warrants for legal sufficiency; (3) determining which cases and charges will be filed; (4) negotiating cases (5) extradition; (6) attending parole hearings (7) community outreach.  With regard to community service the SBDDAA takes pride in the fact that many of our Deputy District Attorneys donate time and resources to the charitable causes including: Summit for Danny, State Street Mile, Special Olympics Torch Run, and the Santa Barbara High School Mock Trial Competition.