Steve Peace was born to two teachers in San Diego. After attending Bonita Vista High School, where he was a standout athlete and student body president. After graduation, he attended the University of California-San Diego, majoring in political science. He married his wife, Cheryl, in 1973. He has three sons. His professional career has largely been in politics -- he was elected to the California State Assembly in 1982, and continued serving in that body until moving to the state Senate in 1993. He did, however, continue to serve as CFO of Four Square Productions, a company specializing in films about San Diego but which also produced the infamous Killer Tomato series.