Senate Confirms Three Federal Judges

SAN FRANCISCO (CN) - The U.S. Senate on Wednesday confirmed three judges to the U.S. District Court in Arizona, including the nation's first female Native American federal judge.

Federal Magistrate Judge Steven Paul Logan will fill the judgeship vacant since Jan. 30, 2013, when District Judge James Teilborg assumed senior status.

Chief Assistant U.S. Attorney for Arizona John Joseph Tuchi will take the judgeship vacant since Sept. 3, 2103, when Chief District Judge Roslyn Silver assumed senior status.

Diane Humetewa, a member of the Hopi Tribe, will fill the judgeship vacant since Jan. 3, 2011, when District Judge Mary Murguia was appointed to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Humetewa is the third Native American to serve as a federal judge. She is a former assistant U.S. attorney and now serves as a special adviser on tribal relations to the president of Arizona State University and also teaches at ASU's Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law.

All three judges were confirmed by 96-0 vote.

The U.S. District Court for Arizona now has three vacancies in its 13 authorized judgeships.

There are 74 vacancies in the federal courts: 61 on district courts and 13 on U.S. Courts of Appeal. Thirty-nine nominations are pending.

Subscribe to Closing Arguments

Sign up for new weekly newsletter Closing Arguments to get the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and hot cases and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world.

Email *

Submit