Burgum Appoints Cass County Prosecutor Tristan Van de Streek to East Central Judicial District Judgeship

Gov. Doug Burgum Wednesday appointed Cass County Assistant State’s Attorney Tristan Van de Streek to a judgeship in the East Central Judicial District, effective Jan. 21, 2019.

Van de Streek will fill the post currently held by Judge Douglas R. Herman, who is retiring after serving as an East Central Judicial District judge since 2004. Van de Streek will be chambered in Fargo.

Van de Streek has served as an assistant state’s attorney in Cass County since 2007, handling all manner of criminal prosecution, from jury trials in double homicide cases to enforcing prohibitions on unleashed dogs. He has also conducted training for law enforcement on investigative practices and courtroom procedures; advised the county on contractual issues and other matters; and helped develop a domestic violence multi-disciplinary team with law enforcement, probation and service providers so that domestic violence offenders could receive treatment and education. Van de Streek previously served as assistant Fargo city attorney and city prosecutor from 2005 to 2007, managing thousands of cases each year, and as assistant city attorney in Minot from 2003 to 2007, where he also was an associate at the law firm Van de Streek and Ward.

A lifelong North Dakotan, Van de Streek earned his law degree in 2003 from the University of North Dakota School of Law in Grand Forks and a bachelor’s degree in history in 2000 from Minot State University. He is a member of the Cass County Bar Association and the North Dakota State’s Attorney’s Association and is active as a youth group leader in his church.