Tim Covello, who prosecuted Rex Krebs, sworn in as SLO Superior Court judge

San Luis Obispo Superior Court’s newest judge was sworn in Friday before a packed courtroom.

Timothy Covello was elected to the bench in the June 2018 primary election to succeed retiring Judge Barry LaBarbera, his former boss when he served as a prosecutor at the District Attorney’s Office. After starting his career as a public defender in San Francisco, Covello went on to prosecute some of the county’s most well-known murder trials, including those for killer Rex Krebs and the killers of Santa Maria teen Dystiny Myers.

Covello served as Assistant District Attorney and ran unsuccessfully for District Attorney in 2014 before being appointed as county commissioner, and has for the last three years presided over small claims and traffic court cases.

Before past and current colleagues, friends and family, he called Friday’s ceremony “overwhelming” and his path to the bench “unusual.”

He recalled being asked by a reporter what his future held following his 2014 bid for DA.

“I said I was going to find another way to serve my community,” Covello said. “And I think that’s what I’ve done.”