Concert violinist Wendy Patrick is making the streets of San Diego more harmonious by the minute, but not by making music on street corners. Patrick is one of two deputy district attorneys in the county who prosecute hate crimes from start to finish.

“I enjoy it so much because I work with victims who are really thrilled to be listened to,” says Patrick, who moved to San Diego in 1991 to attend law school. “This is one of the most rewarding assignments I’ve had.”

Patrick has worked as a deputy public defender and a deputy district attorney, having many specialized assignments from working in the juvenile division to serving as the arson deputy, acting as the director of the Serious Habitual Offender unit, and staffing the domestic violence unit in El Cajon.

Active in several philanthropic, nonlegal organizations, Patrick is a member of the San Diego Alcohol and Drug Advisory Board, appointed by the county supervisors, a board member of the San Diego Crime Victims’ Fund, and a previous board member of the American Cancer Society (Society Club). In the legal community, she sits on the board of the California Western School of Law Alumni Association, and is a member of the Welsh Inn of Court, the Thomas More Society (Catholic Lawyers’ group) and a board member as well as a program chair of the San Diego Lawyers’ club.

A graduate of the University of California at Los Angeles, Patrick also is an active member of the Lincoln Club, the California Congress of Republicans, and she serves on the board of Fairbanks Republican Women Federated where she chairs the community involvement section, focusing on outreach to the Hispanic community.

Playing violin daily since she was 4, Patrick has performed nationally and internationally. She has a purple belt in karate and is a proficient speed skater and skier.

— Alexis Pasqua