On January 17, 2025, Timothy J. Barker was sworn in as District Attorney for York County. In his address, he highlighted 3 core principles: (1) Public Safety; (2) Community Wellbeing; and (3) Fairness and Justice.
Tim has a longstanding history of service to the York County community. He served as a prosecutor in the York County District Attorney’s Office since 1998 and as an executive prosecutor since 2001. Prior to becoming District Attorney, Tim acted as First Assistant District Attorney, appointed to that position by former District Attorney and current Attorney General Dave Sunday.
Tim’s prosecutorial experience on behalf of York County included specializing as a complex trial and appellate litigator, which included many complex and well-known homicide, homicide by vehicle, child abuse, elder abuse, domestic violence, drug delivery resulting in death, terrorism, and economic fraud cases. Prior to becoming District Attorney, he was entrusted in his executive roles with establishing investigative and prosecutorial policies for York County. Tim is nationally recognized for his prosecutorial work, including receipt of the 2007 National Traffic Safety Award for Prosecutors, presented by the National Association of Prosecutor Coordinators, and being named the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)/National Association of Prosecutor Coordinators (NAPC) Prosecutor Fellow for 2011 and 2012.
Tim actively developed and provided leadership for many of the highly successful public safety and criminal justice initiatives enacted in York County. He served as Managing Co-Chair of the Advisory Board for the York County Reentry Coalition since its inception. He also served on the York County Mental Health Justice Advisory Committee (MHJAC), Co-Responder Oversight Committee, Steering Committee for the York Stable Housing Collaborative, Governance Committee for the Group Violence Intervention (GVI) Initiative, and Advisory Board for Community Action for Recovery and Diversion (CARD). Tim was a critical contributor to the development of the “Target 25” DUI supervised bail initiative, which is a nationally recognized innovation in DUI reduction, and served as an executive supervising prosecutor to the York County Wellness Courts on behalf of the District Attorney’s Office.
Tim was a regular presenter and co-presenter on a national and state level concerning public safety and criminal justice initiatives, homicides, vehicular crimes, and forensic evidence. Tim also is a frequent speaker on Victims’ Rights, which included being a featured presenter at the kick-off rally for the 2006 National Crime Victims’ Rights Week at the Pennsylvania State Capitol.
Tim received his bachelor’s degree in Political Science and History from Dickinson College in 1991. He received his law degree from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law in 1995.
