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A portion of Darci's winning essay:
Growing up, my father, an attorney, played “Judge Darci” with me. An invented game, he would summarize cases he was familiar with and then ask me to make a finding based upon the information. He emphasized reasonable and fair decisions. Moreover, he praised me wildly when my
findings were consistent with those of the actual case. It is common for me now to read up on current case law, since my daily actions as a police officer are held to those standards. My current pursuit of law has been several years in the making. As an undergraduate at San Diego
State University (SDSU), I struggled initially with selecting a major. I ultimately selected Criminal Justice Administration. My grades lacked excellence during my undergraduate years as I regularly worked 20-35 hours per week, a financial necessity to continue my education.
Additionally, I captained the women’s rowing team, which assisted with half of my tuition, but consumed a great deal of time. I enjoyed the life of a student athlete but realized, too late, that I should have placed greater focus on academics. Nevertheless, I know that my work ethic and athletic contributions balanced my undergraduate experience and ultimately led me to more challenging academic aspirations. While a student athlete at SDSU, I developed an interest in athletic administration. In my senior year, I earned an internship to the athletic department at the University of California at San Diego. Successful completion of the internship helped me secure acceptance in the Sport Management program in the School of Education at Boston University (BU). The Sport Management program at BU is rooted in education, not business or financial gain, as are many sport management graduate programs at other universities. I believe that the emphasis in education supported my development as a creative and empathetic member of the workforce. My true intellectual capacity was demonstrated in my graduate studies, where I compiled a 3.83 GPA. Upon completing my coursework at BU, I took a position as sport and recreation coordinator at a grant-funded urban youth center in Brockton, Massachusetts. The center was new, and I had the opportunity to design an education and adventure-based program whereby youth, ages 14-20, could learn cooperation and trust, and develop self-confidence. My job had the additional challenge of serving many young people who were in the process of learning English. Certain events in the program required that I work closely with the local police department. It was from this experience that I acquired a renewed interest in law enforcement. I decided to move closer to my family in California and pursue a career as a police officer. Police work has been fulfilling in many ways and often requires utilization of my ability to be a reliable component of a team, to mitigate intense situations, and to communicate with diverse populations about a variety of their concerns. I have worked for the Pacifica Police Department for five years. Hard work and dedication to the field has earned me a degree of confidence rare for a relatively new officer. I was selected to serve in the Investigations Bureau as a Detective only two years and three months into the job. Six months later, my promotion to Corporal required that I leave the Bureau to become a first-line supervisor for the Patrol Division. My current position involves panoply of skills and personal initiative: I am a Hostage Negotiator, work with the K-9 program, and serve as the Infectious Diseases Instructor. Most recently, I initiated the idea for and subsequently developed an entirely new program to combat underage drinking. Entitled “21 COAST,” (Underage Consumption of Alcohol Suppression Team), this project requires collaboration with a variety of community organizations, outside law enforcement agencies, and the school-system. Additionally, I am responsible for developing successful grant proposals to underwrite and to maintain the sustainability of the program. While I feel fortunate to have become an integral part of the community I serve, I am not yet entirely satisfied with my career. While working closely with some of the Deputy District Attorneys in San Mateo County, I have witnessed the intense creativity and commitment required to try cases successfully, and to seek reasonable pleas and fair sentencing. My exposure to criminal prosecution has resulted in an informed belief that my education, professional background, and personal philosophy make me exceptionally well suited for the practice of criminal law. This is so particularly with respect to professional experience in law enforcement when combined with a keen understanding of non-profit organizations that cater to populations disproportionately accused of crimes. The next logical step in my professional development is law school. Since I expect to continue working and living in the San Francisco Bay Area while studying law, it is vital that the law school I attend has a culture that is academically rigorous while encouraging students to approach their studies in a manner that engages the whole person. I was accepted to Golden Gate University Law School, which has a strong reputation for teaching the practical application of the law. Further, it affords working professionals the opportunity to attend part time. It is my intention to utilize my experiences and educational pursuits so that I can offer my services both to victims of crimes and persons disproportionately accused of crimes.
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