Earlier this year, District Attorney Joyce E. Dudley decided not to seek a fourth term and instead retire after more than 32 years.

Today, she described her decision as “bittersweet and somewhat scary.”

Dudley began working at age six in her father’s restaurant in Queens, New York. She has never been unemployed until her upcoming final day of work on Jan. 2, which will be followed by a small retirement party.

Dudley will swear in District Attorney-Elect John T. Savrnoch at 11 a.m. Jan. 3 at the Santa
Barbara District Attorney’s Office.

Dudley plans to leave the following day for an extended trip to Colorado.

“I grew up quite poor, and I always dreamed about being able to ski to my heart’s content,” Dudley said. “So that is what this trip is all about.

“For me, this trip is also about discovering who I am without the most cherished positions I have held throughout my life: mother of four boys, wife [Joyce’s husband John died in 2019], and district attorney for the county of Santa Barbara.

“The best way to describe how I feel now is the old adage: ‘Parting is such sweet sorrow.’ The best part of my new life is that I will have uninterrupted time with those I love, including my children and grandchildren.”

Dudley also said she deeply appreciates the people she has worked with, as well as the people of the communities she has served.

Dudley concluded by saying how thrilled she is that Savrnoch will be her successor, and she
feels her office is full of extraordinary professionals in every division.