Durbin Questions Latest Circuit & District Court Nominees Before Judiciary Committee
Statement
During today's Judiciary Committee hearing, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, questioned Arianna Freeman, nominee to be United States Circuit Judge for the Third Circuit. Durbin asked Ms. Freeman about her background as a public defender and specifically her representation of Anthony Velazquez. As Ms. Freeman argued, Mr. Velazquez's trial counsel had provided ineffective assistance of counsel by failing to properly enter a plea of guilty but mentally ill.
"Ms. Freeman I'd like if you can [speak to whether] you bring any particular bias to the role of circuit court judge based on your previous professional experience and if you could refer to your case of Anthony Velazquez which is a good illustration of your background," said Durbin.
Ms. Freeman confirmed in her more than twelve years as a federal public defender, she has been impartial. If confirmed, she would fairly and neutrally apply the facts. She reaffirmed the Third Circuit agreed procedural requirements had not been fulfilled in Mr. Velazquez's case.
Durbin also questioned Judge Stephanie Davis, nominee to be United States Circuit Judge for the Sixth Circuit. Durbin asked about her role in United States v. Shafinia, a case involving five defendants who were indicted for conspiring to issue fraudulent prescriptions for oxycontin--and other controlled substances. Judge Davis was a prosecutor in the case, one of the earliest prosecutions targeting the opioid epidemic in the Eastern District of Michigan.
"Both of you bring extraordinary experience to this new pursuit in your careers and bring [diverse] personal and professional background, which are important for the court to see," Durbin concluded.
Durbin also questioned Evelyn Padin, nominee to be United States District Judge for the District of New Jersey; Jennifer Rearden, nominee to be United States District Judge for the District of New York; and Robert Huie, nominee to be United States District Judge for the District of the Southern District of California.
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