Jenkins was a
law clerk in the
Alameda County District Attorney's Office, California, from 1980 to 1981, and then a deputy district attorney (prosecutor) in that same office from 1981 to 1983. and for the
United States Department of Justice in the
Civil Rights Division from 1983 to 1985.
Judicial service A
Democrat, Jenkins was appointed to the Alameda County Municipal Court by
Republican Governor George Deukmejian in 1989. In August 2007, Jenkins asked Republican Governor
Arnold Schwarzenegger to consider him for a seat on the California Court of Appeal. On January 25, 2008, Schwarzenegger nominated Jenkins to fill the vacancy on the First District Court of Appeal created by the retirement of Justice Joanne C. Parrilli. On November 11, 2020, Jenkins was confirmed as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of California. The state's Commission on Judicial Appointments approved his nomination by a 3–0 vote. On December 4, 2020, Jenkins was sworn in as the newest Associate Justice of the California Supreme Court. In 2022, Jenkins ruled with a majority of the California Supreme Court in ordering University of California, Berkeley to cut its enrollment after a local
NIMBY group argued that more students in the college town would have an adverse environmental impact. In the 2022 election, he was retained by California voters to continue to serve as an associate justice with 69.4% of an affirmative vote. On October 9, 2025, Jenkins announced his retirement from the bench at the end of month. == Personal life ==