Honorees

Michael E. Lasater

1948-2025

Michael E. Lasater devoted his life to public service and to the fair administration of justice. He served our community as a prosecutor for 50 years. During that time, Mr. Lasater earned a reputation as an exceptional prosecutor, an amazing mentor, and a trusted colleague, having earned the respect of judges, defense counsel, and many young lawyers and support staff who looked to him for guidance. Sadly, he passed away on February 2, 2025, after an extended illness. 

Mr. Lasater was born in San Francisco and raised in San Anselmo. He graduated from Marin Catholic High School and attended the University of San Francisco. Mr. Lasater earned his law degree from the University of San Diego School of Law. 

In 1974, he began his 9-year career as a California Deputy Attorney General where he handled criminal matters and was selected be part of the newly formed Special Prosecutions Unit. As a DAG, he investigated and prosecuted complex cases involving organized crime, major drug trafficking, and large-scale fraud. These early years sharpened the research, writing, advocacy, and judgment that would define the rest of Mr. Lasater’s career.  

In 1983, Mr. Lasater joined the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California, where he served for more than four decades. During his tenure, he handled a wide range of federal criminal matters, including organized crime, violent crime, international drug trafficking, border crimes, sophisticated sting operations, and other sensitive and complex prosecutions. He has been described as a superb trial lawyer who was respected for his preparation, candor, integrity, judgment, and steady professionalism. His word was trusted and he held an unwavering belief that a prosecutor’s duty is not simply to win cases, but to do justice. Mr. Lasater was known for approaching each matter with a deep respect for due process, constitutional rights, and the dignity of every person in the courtroom.

Mr. Lasater also left an extraordinary legacy as a teacher and mentor.  His office was a place to seek guidance on the law, evidence, ethics, trial strategy, and the difficult judgment calls that define criminal practice. He trained new attorneys with rigor and high standards, but also with patience, humor, and generosity. Many recalled his open-door policy and how he would ask exacting but constructive questions with constant insistence that excellence in advocacy must always be matched by fairness and perspective. His influence extended through formal supervisory roles as well as informal day-to-day mentorship, which continues to be felt in courtrooms throughout San Diego.  

Beyond his prosecutorial work and mentorship, Mr. Lasater also contributed to the profession through his service on the California State Bar Criminal Law Advisory Committee, Board of Legal Specialization. In that capacity, he reviewed applications for certification and recertification and helped draft examination questions for criminal law specialists. Similarly, he contributed to the community in his work as Chair of the Tierra Bonita Elementary School Site Council, Director of Rancho YMCA Board of Managers, Treasurer for Poway Girls Lacrosse, and as a coordinator and speaker for organizations including Women’s Opportunities Week and SDCBA Speakers program involving topics of women in non-traditional roles to encourage youth, both the boys and girls, to be open to more opportunities and to accept women in nontraditional roles. In addition, as part of outreach efforts, he presented on regarding criminal law topics including how to avoid being in “the wrong place at the wrong time”.  That work reflected the same dedication to professional standards and service that marked every stage of his career.  

Those who knew him also remember a devoted husband, father, grandfather, neighbor, and friend. He was deeply committed to his family and wife of more than 50 years. Mr. Lasater was ahead of his time on equality issues, understanding the importance of sharing household and child-rearing responsibilities and took immense joy in the lives of their daughters and grandchildren. He was known for his warmth, humor, generosity, and the balance he modeled between an extraordinarily demanding professional life and a rich family life. Whether in court, in the office, or in his community, he was admired not only for what he accomplished, but for how he treated people. 

Mr. Lasater’s life and career reflect the highest ideals of the criminal justice system, including integrity, service, fairness, professionalism, and mentorship. He was the kind of lawyer whose influence could be measured not just by outcomes, but by the enduring example he set for others.

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