The Good News: Confirmation Hearings Continue
Last week, the committee held the confirmation hearing of the Innocence Project’s Nina Morrison (U.S. Dist. Court for the E.D.N.Y.). While Republican senators fixated on pinning her to increased crime, Morrison gracefully rebuffed attacks and focused on what was important—how her work on wrongful convictions has literally given freedom back to dozens of innocent people. These same misleading tactics will likely surface in the upcoming SCOTUS battle, should the nominee have experience as a public defender.
Next week, two more remarkable nominees will go before the Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC): renowned public defender Arianna Freeman (3rd Cir., PA) and Judge Stephanie Davis (6th Cir., MI). - Arianna Freeman specializes in habeas matters and would be the first Black woman to serve in the Circuit.
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Judge Stephanie Davis currently serves on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. She would be the second Black woman to serve on the court and the first from Michigan.
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Pay Attention: Mark-Up Moves We expect the following exciting nominees to be advanced by the Judiciary Committee on March 3rd. - Judge Kenly Kiya Kato – Judge Kato is nominated to the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California and has served as a U.S. Magistrate Judge for the Central District of California since 2014.
- Judge Sunshine Sykes – Judge Sykes is nominated to the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. If confirmed, she would be the first Native American to serve as a federal judge in California and only the sixth active Native American federal district court judge.
- Jennifer Rochon – Rochon is nominated to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. She is currently general counsel for Girl Scouts of the USA.
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