Michael Selyem

Mr. Selyem is dedicated to the field of criminal justice and criminal defense and brings nearly three decades of experience to the table. Mr. Selyem began his career in the field of criminal justice in 1994 when he was hired as a Deputy Sheriff with the Orange County Sheriff’s Department. With experience in patrol, corrections, and training, Mr. Selyem acquired a tremendous amount of knowledge of police procedure, policy, training, and tactics, which is invaluable when handling criminal defense cases.

After nearly ten years with the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, Mr. Selyem graduated from the prestigious UCLA School of Law and began his legal career in 2006 as a prosecutor with the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office where he worked until 2019. While with the District Attorney’s Office, Mr. Selyem handled thousands of misdemeanor and felony cases and handled multiple assignments including misdemeanor trials, juvenile cases, and felony preliminary hearings and trials, After 4 years in the office, Mr. Selyem was promoted to the hardcore gang and career criminal unit, where he was primarily responsible for prosecuting serious violent crimes including assault, burglary, robbery, attempted murder, and murder cases.

After several years in the hardcore gang and career criminal unit, Mr. Selyem was assigned as one of only two attorneys to the cold case homicide unit. Two years into the cold case homicide assignment, the office tapped Mr. Selyem to be the lead attorney of the hardcore gang and career criminal unit. As the lead attorney, Mr. Selyem was responsible for issuing all gang cases in San Bernardino and all assignments of those cases to the six attorneys he supervised. Additionally, Mr. Selyem also handled a calendar of some of the office’s most high-profile murder cases during this time. To date, Mr. Selyem has tried nearly 30 murder and attempted murder cases from jury selection to verdict.

Mr. Selyem now uses his nearly three decades of experience in the criminal justice system to vigorously defend the criminally accused and help them fight for their rights. Mr. Selyem firmly believes that there is simply no better advantage for someone accused of a crime than to have a criminal defense attorney who has both the prosecutor’s playbook and the police officer’s playbook in his hands. That’s the dedication and experience Mr. Selyem brings to court every day for all of his clients.

Education

• UCLA School of Law, Los Angeles, CA
  • Juris Doctorate
    • May 2004
  • Legal Research & Writing Fellow while at UCLA
• California State University Fullerton, Fullerton, CA
  • Bachelor of Arts: Political Science
    • Graduated overall #1 in Criminal Justice and Political Science
    • Graduated with Highest Honors
  • August 1999

Licenses and Professional Memberships

• State Bar of California (State Bar number 243862)
• State Bar of New York (State Bar number 4303806)
• Admitted to Practice in NY:
  • 2^nd Appellate Department
  • NYS Supreme Court
• Admitted to Practice in CA:
  • United States District Court, Eastern District of California
  • United States District Court, Northern District of California
  • United States District Court, Southern District of California
  • United States District Court, Central District of California
• Orange County Bar Association

Honors

• POST (Peace Officer Standards & Training) Certified Criminal Law Instructor – State of CA