Kari Hathorn is a pro tem judge and attorney. She tried over 100 jury trials during her fifteen years as a prosecutor. She started her career as a prosecutor in Washington State where she worked on a variety of types of cases, including DUI, felony drug offenses, homicide, and domestic violence. In 2010, Ms. Hathorn moved to Oregon to work at the Deschutes County District Attorney’s Office in Bend, Oregon. Although Ms. Hathorn was assigned a wide variety of cases, she specialized in prosecuting DUII, Vehicular Homicide, and Vehicular Assault cases. In 2016, Ms. Hathorn was a recipient of the DUII Prosecutor of the Year for the State of Oregon. She was nominated for the award by Dr. Jackson, a forensic scientist for the Oregon State Crime lab, who noted that, “because of her mastery in the field of toxicology, and ethanol metabolism specifically, she knows what questions to ask, and more importantly, how to ask them.” In 2018, Ms. Hathorn was awarded the Outstanding Prosecutor of the Year award for her work on a challenging DUII fatality. In 2019, she transitioned into a civil law practice where she continues to pursue her passion for traffic safety by representing people involved in motor vehicle crashes and people who have lost a family member in motor vehicle crashes.
