Active African-American Article III Judges

Article III of the Constitution created the U.S. Supreme Court and gave Congress the power to create the federal courts of appeals and district courts. Since 1789, more than 3,427 judges have served on Article III courts. Currently, there are 146 active African-American Article III Judges.

Supreme Court of the United States

The Supreme Court consists of the Chief Justice of the United States and eight associate justices. At its discretion, and within certain guidelines established by Congress, the Supreme Court each year hears a limited number of the cases it is asked to decide. Those cases may begin in the federal or state courts and usually involve important questions about the Constitution or federal law.

Judge	Court	Commission	Status	Gender
Clarence Thomas	Supreme Court	10/18/1991	Active	Male

Court of Appeals

The 94 U.S. judicial districts are organized into 12 regional circuits, each of which has a United States Court of Appeals. This court hears appeals from the district courts located within its circuit and appeals from decisions of federal administrative agencies. In addition, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has nationwide jurisdiction to hear appeals in specialized cases, such as those involving patent laws and cases decided by the Court of International Trade and the Court of Federal Claims.

Judge	Court	Commission	Status	Gender
Allyson K. Duncan	Fourth Circuit	8/15/2003	Active	Female
Aloyisus Leon Higginbotham, Jr.	Third Circuit	10/11/1977	Terminated/Retired 3/5/93	Male
Amalya L. Kearse	Second Circuit	6/21/1979	Senior Status 6/11/02	Female
Andre M. Davis	Fourth Circuit	11/10/2009	Terminated/Retired 8/31/17	Male
Ann Claire Williams	Seventh Circuit	11/15/1999	Terminated/Retired 1/16/18	Female
Barrington Parker, Jr.	Second Circuit	10/16/2001	Senior Status 10/10/09	Male
Bernice B. Donald	Sixth Circuit	9/8/2011	Active	Female
Carl E. Stewart***	Fifth Circuit	5/9/1994	Active	Male
Charles R. Wilson	Eleventh Circuit	8/9/1999	Active	Male
Damon J. Keith	Sixth Circuit	10/21/1977	Terminated/Death 4/28/19	Male
Eric L. Clay	Sixth Circuit	8/1/1997	Active	Male
Harry T. Edwards	DC Circuit	2/20/1980	Senior Status 11/3/05	Male
James A. Wynn Jr.	Fourth Circuit	8/10/2010	Active	Male
James E. Graves, Jr.	Fifth Circuit	2/15/2011	Active	Male
Janice Rogers Brown	DC Circuit	6/10/2005	Terminated/Retired 8/31/17	Female
Jerome Holmes	Tenth Circuit	8/9/2006	Active	Male
Johnnie B. Rawlinson	Ninth Circuit	7/26/2000	Active	Female
Joseph A. Greenaway, Jr.	Third Circuit	2/12/2010	Active	Male
Joseph Jerome Farris	Ninth Circuit	9/27/1979	Senior Status 3/4/95	Male
Joseph W. Hatchett	Eleventh Circuit	10/1/1981	Terminated/Retired 5/4/99	Male
Judith W. Rogers	DC Circuit	3/11/1994	Active	Female
Lavenski R. Smith***	Eighth Circuit	7/19/2002	Active	Male
Lawrence Warren Pierce	Second Circuit	11/18/1981	Terminated/Retired 3/31/95	Male
O. Rogeriee Thompson	First Circuit	3/30/2010	Active	Female
Paul J. Watford	Ninth Circuit	5/22/2012	Active	Male
R. Guy Cole, Jr.***	Sixth Circuit	12/26/1995	Active	Male
Raymond J. Lohier, Jr.	Second Circuit	12/20/2010	Active	Male
Robert L. Wilkins	DC Circuit	1/15/2014	Active	Male
Roger L. Gregory***	Fourth Circuit	7/25/2001	Active	Male
Theodore McKee	Third Circuit	6/9/1994	Active	Male
Timothy K. Lewis	Third Circuit	10/9/1992	Terminated/Resigned 6/30/99	Male

District Courts

The United States District Courts are the trial courts of the federal court system. Within limits set by Congress and the Constitution, the District Courts have jurisdiction to hear nearly all categories of federal cases, including both civil and criminal matters.

There are 94 federal district courts, including at least one district court in each state, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Three territories of the United States—the Virgin Islands, Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands—have District Courts that hear federal cases, including bankruptcy cases.

Judge	Court	Commission	Status	Gender
Abdul K. Kallon	Alabama (ND)	1/4/2010	Active	Male
Ada E. Brown	Texas (ND)	9/13/2019	Active	Female
Alexander Williams, Jr.	Maryland	8/18/1994	Terminated/Retired 1/3/14	Male
Alfred Homer Bennett	Texas (SD)	4/15/2015	Active	Male
Algenon L. Marbley	Ohio (SD)	11/7/1997	Active	Male
Alvin Thompson	Connecticut	10/11/1994	Active	Male
Analisa Torres	New York (SD)	4/23/2013	Active	Female
Ancer Lee Haggerty	Oregon	3/28/1994	Senior Status 8/26/09	Male
Andre Birotte Jr.	California (CD)	8/8/2014	Active	Male
Andrea R. Wood	Illinois (ND)	10/15/2013	Active	Female
Andrew L. Carter, Jr.	New York (SD)	12/8/2011	Active	Male
Anna Diggs Taylor	Michigan (ED)	11/2/1979	Senior Status 12/31/98	Female
Anne E. Thompson	New Jersey	11/2/1979	Senior Status 6/1/01	Female
Arenda L. Wright Allen	Virginia (ED)	5/12/2011	Active	Female
Audrey B. Collins	California (CD)	5/9/1994	Terminated/Retired 8/1/14	Female
Benita Yolanda Pearson	Ohio (ND)	12/27/2010	Active	Female
Bernard M. Jones	Oklahoma (WD)	12/31/2019	Active	Male
Blanche M. Manning	Illinois (ND)	8/10/1994	Senior Status 2/1/10	Female
Brian A. Jackson	Louisiana (MD)	6/15/2010	Active	Male
Brian C. Wimes	Missouri (ED, WD)	4/30/2012	Active	Male
Brian J. Davis	Florida (MD)	12/26/2013	Active	Male
Brian Stacy Miller***	Arkansas (ED)	4/17/2008	Active	Male
C. Darnell Jones II	Pennsylvania (ED)	10/30/2008	Active	Male
Carlton W. Reeves	Mississippi (SD)	12/20/2010	Active	Male
Carol E. Jackson	Missouri (ED)	8/17/1992	Terminated/Retired 8/31/17	Female
Charlene E. Honeywell	Florida (MD)	11/12/2009	Active	Female
Charles N. Clevert	Wisconsin (ED)	7/29/1996	Terminated/Retired 3/31/17	Male
Charles Shaw	Missouri (ED)	11/22/1993	Senior Status 12/31/09	Male
Christopher R. Cooper	District of Columbia	3/28/2014	Active	Male
Clarence Cooper	Georgia (ND)	5/9/1994	Senior Status 2/9/09	Male
Consuelo B. Marshall	California (CD)	9/30/1980	Senior Status 10/24/05	Female
Curtis Lynn Collier	Tennessee (ED)	5/10/1995	Senior Status 10/31/14	Male
Darrin Phillip Gayles ±	Florida (SD)	6/19/2014	Active	Male
Deborah Batts ±	New York (SD)	5/9/1994	Terminated/Death 2/3/20	Female
Debra M. Brown	Mississippi (ND)	11/5/2013	Active	Female
Denise Jefferson Casper	Massachusetts	12/20/2010	Active	Female
Denise Page Hood***	Michigan (ED)	6/16/1994	Active	Female
Donald L. Graham	Florida (SD)	9/16/1991	Senior Status 12/15/13	Male
Eleanor Louise Ross	Georgia (MD)	11/20/2014	Active	Female
Emmet G. Sullivan	District of Columbia	6/16/1994	Active	Male
Fernando J. Gaitan	Missouri (WD)	8/2/1991	Senior Status 1/3/14	Male
Franklin Ulyses Valderrama	Illinois (ND)	9/23/2020	Active	Male
Garland E. Burrell, Jr.	California (ED)	3/2/1992	Senior Status 7/4/12	Male
George B. Daniels	New York (SD)	3/9/2000	Active	Male
George Carol Hanks, Jr.	Texas (SD)	4/22/2015	Active	Male
George J. Hazel	Maryland	5/2/2014	Active	Male
George Levi Russell, III	Maryland	5/22/2012	Active	Male
Gerald Bruce Lee	Virginia (ED)	10/1/1998	Terminated/Retired 9/30/17	Male
Gershwin Allen Drain	Michigan (ED)	8/8/2012	Active	Male
Gregory H. Woods III	New York (SD)	11/18/2013	Active	Male
Gregory M. Sleet	Delaware	4/30/1998	Senior Status 5/1/17	Male
Haywood Stirling Gilliam, Jr.	California (ND)	12/19/2014	Active	Male
Henry Edward Autrey	Missouri (ED)	8/2/2002	Active	Male
Henry Harold Kennedy, Jr.	District of Columbia	9/18/1997	Senior Status 11/18/11	Male
Henry Lee Adams	Florida (MD)	11/24/1993	Senior Status 4/8/10	Male
Henry T. Wingate	Mississippi (SD)	10/17/1985	Active	Male
Horace T. Ward	Georgia (ND)	12/6/1979	Terminated/Death 4/23/16	Male
Irene C. Berger	West Virginia (SD)	11/9/2009	Active	Female
Ivan L.R. Lemelle	Louisiana (ED)	4/7/1998	Senior Status 6/29/15	Male
J. Curtis Joyner	Pennsylvania (ED)	4/13/1992	Senior Status 5/1/13	Male
James A. Beaty, Jr.	N. Carolina (MD)	10/11/1994	Senior Status 6/30/14	Male
James R. Spencer	Virginia (ED)	10/14/1986	Terminated/Retired 6/2/17	Male
James Ware	California (ND)	10/1/1990	Terminated/Retired 8/31/12	Male
Jason K. Pulliam	Texas (WD)	8/5/2019	Active	Male
Joe Billy McDade	Illinois (CD)	11/25/1991	Senior Status 2/28/10	Male
John A. Houston	California (SD)	10/7/2003	Senior Status 2/6/18	Male
John T. Fowlkes, Jr.	Tennessee (WD)	8/1/2012	Active	Male
Julian A. Cook, Jr.	Michigan (ED)	9/23/1978	Terminated/Death 5/16/17	Male
Julianna Michelle Childs	South Carolina	8/20/2010	Active	Female
Julie A. Robinson***	Kansas	12/13/2001	Active	Female
Kenneth Hoyt	Texas (SD)	4/1/1988	Senior Status 3/2/13	Male
Ketanji Brown Jackson	District of Columbia	3/26/2013	Active	Female
LaShann Moutique DeArcy Hall	New York (ED)	11/17/2015	Active	Female
Laura Taylor Swain	New York (SD)	7/11/2000	Active	Female
Legrome D. Davis	Pennsylvania (ED)	4/23/2002	Terminated/Retired 9/28/17	Male
Leslie Joyce Abrams	Georgia (MD)	11/20/2014	Active	Female
Linda Vivienne Parker	Michigan (ED)	3/17/2014	Active	Female
Loretta Copeland Biggs	N. Carolina (MD)	12/19/2014	Active	Female
Marcia G. Cooke	Florida (SD)	5/18/2004	Active	Female
Margaret B. Seymour	South Carolina	10/22/1998	Senior Status 1/16/13	Female
Margo K. Brodie	New York (ED)	2/29/2012	Active	Female
Mary Stenson Scriven	Florida (MD)	9/30/2008	Active	Female
Michael James Davis	Minnesota	3/28/1994	Senior Status 8/1/15	Male
Michael Andre Shipp	New Jersey	7/26/2012	Active	Male
Morrison C. England, Jr.	California (ED)	8/2/2002	Active	Male
Myron H. Thompson	Alabama (MD)	9/29/1980	Senior Status 8/22/13	Male
Nannette Jolivette Brown***	Louisiana (ED)	10/4/2011	Active	Female
Otis D. Wright II	California (CD)	4/16/2007	Active	Male
Percy Anderson	California (CD)	5/1/2002	Active	Male
Petrese B. Tucker	Pennsylvania (ED)	6/1/2000	Active	Female
Phyllis J. Hamilton***	California (ND)	5/25/2000	Active	Female
Raner C. Collins	Arizona	8/3/1998	Senior Status 3/4/19	Male
Raymond A. Jackson	Virginia (ED)	11/22/1993	Active	Male
Raymond P. Moore	Colorado	3/26/2013	Active	Male
Reggie B. Walton	District of Columbia	9/24/2001	Senior Status 12/31/15	Male
Richard A. Jones	Washington (WD)	10/29/2007	Active	Male
Richard Ernest Myers II	North Carolina (ED)	12/10/2019	Active	Male
Richard Franklin Boulware II	Nevada	6/10/2014	Active	Male
Richard W. Roberts	District of Columbia	6/23/1998	Senior Status 3/16/16	Male
Roderick Charles Young	Virginia (ED)	9/29/2020	Active	Male
Rodney Smith	Florida (SD)	6/14/2019	Active	Male
Ronnie L. White	Missouri (ED)	7/17/2014	Active	Male
Rossie David Alston, Jr.	Virginia (ED)	6/12/2019	Active	Male
Sam A. Lindsay	Texas (ND)	3/17/1998	Active	Male
Sandra L. Townes	New York (ED)	8/2/2004	Terminated/Death 2/18/18	Female
Sara L. Ellis	Illinois (ND)	10/8/2013	Active	Female
Saundra Brown Armstrong	California (ND)	6/18/1991	Senior Status 3/23/12	Female
Sharon Johnson Coleman	Illinois (ND)	7/13/2010	Active	Female
Solomon Oliver, Jr.	Ohio (ND)	5/9/1994	Active	Male
Staci Michelle Yandle ±	Illinois (SD)	6/19/2014	Active	Female
Stephan P. Mickle	Florida (ND)	5/22/1998	Senior Status 6/22/11	Male
Stephanie Dawkins Davis	Michigan (ED)	12/31/2019	Active	Female
Stephen C. Robinson	New York (SD)	9/22/2003	Terminated/Retired 8/11/10	Male
Sterling Johnson Jr.	New York (ED)	7/2/1991	Senior Status 6/1/03	Male
Steve C. Jones	Georgia (ND)	3/3/2011	Active	Male
Steven P. Logan	Arizona	5/16/2014	Active	Male
Susan D. Wigenton	New Jersey	6/12/2006	Active	Female
Tanya S. Chutkan	District of Columbia	6/5/2014	Active	Female
Tanya Walton Pratt	Indiana (SD)	6/15/2010	Active	Female
Terry Hatter, Jr.	California (CD)	12/20/1979	Senior Status 4/22/05	Male
Terry Fitzgerald Moorer	Alabama (SD)	9/4/2018	Active	Male
Thelton E. Henderson	California (ND)	6/30/1980	Senior Status 1/28/98	Male
Troy L. Nunley	California (ED)	3/26/2013	Active	Male
U.W. Clemon	Alabama (ND)	6/30/1980	Terminated/Retired 1/31/09	Male
Vanessa L. Bryant	Connecticut	4/2/2007	Active	Female
Vanessa Gilmore	Texas (SD)	6/9/1994	Active	Female
Vernon S. Broderick	New York (SD)	9/10/2013	Active	Male
Vicki Miles–LaGrange	Oklahoma (WD)	11/28/1994	Senior Status 11/5/18	Female
Victor Allen Bolden	Connecticut	11/21/2014	Active	Male
Victoria Roberts	Michigan (ED)	6/29/1998	Active	Female
W. Louis Sands	Georgia (MD)	5/9/1994	Senior Status 4/12/14	Male
Waverly David Crenshaw Jr.***	Tennessee (MD)	4/12/2016	Active	Male
Wendy Beetlestone	Pennsylvania (ED)	11/21/2014	Active	Female
Wiley Young Daniel	Colorado	6/30/1995	Terminated/Death 5/10/19	Male
Wilhelmina Marie Wright	Minnesota	2/18/2016	Active	Female
William F. Kuntz	New York (ED)	10/4/2011	Active	Male
William D. Quarles, Jr.	Maryland	3/14/2003	Terminated/Retired 2/1/16	Male
William Joseph Haynes, Jr.	Tennessee (MD)	11/15/1999	Terminated/Retired 1/16/17	Male
Williams Walls	New Jersey	10/11/1994	Senior Status 1/31/05	Male

Legend

CD - Central District	ED - Eastern District	MD - Middle District	ND - Northern District	SD - Southern District
WD - Western District	± LGBTQ+	*** Current Chief Judge

Data is based on information collected through May 7, 2020. To learn more about the federal courts go to www.fjc.gov.

Judge William Henry Hastie

In 1937, President Franklin D. Roosevelt appointed William H. Hastie as the first African-American to serve a term on the federal court in the Virgin Islands