Municipal Court Department 1
Matthew Walker
The Honorable Judge Matthew Walker has deep roots in Las Vegas, having spent every summer in the valley since elementary school. He attended the Knudson School of Law in South Dakota, graduating in 2007. Shortly after, he made Las Vegas his permanent home, where he has built his career.
With his grandparents and both of his parents having been career-long public servants, Judge Walker developed a profound respect for the responsibilities of serving the public. He began his own career serving the citizens of Las Vegas when he joined the Las Vegas City Attorney’s Office in 2008 as a criminal prosecutor. Over the course of nearly 17 years, he prosecuted thousands of cases and conducted countless trials, eventually being promoted to Senior Deputy City Attorney. In this role, he played a key part in developing and implementing innovative policies and strategies for prosecution.
Judge Walker firmly believes that serving justice requires the Court to address the root causes of crime in addition to holding wrongdoers accountable. With this principle in mind, in 2016, he created the Psychiatric Stabilization and Treatment program to address the large volume of incarcerated defendants who are experiencing mental health crisis and are in need of stabilization and treatment. The program redirects these defendants from incarceration to treatment, and ensures that they return to the court system for follow-up and oversight once they have become stable. Since its inception, the program has helped more than 500 individuals, expanding to include coordination of treatment for defendants who are out of custody.
Judge Walker continues to apply this principle while presiding over the Veteran’s Treatment Court, where he leverages his knowledge and experience regarding mental health treatment to assist criminal defendants who are military veterans and suffer from substance use and mental illness.