Barbara Brandriff Crabb

Barbara Brandriff Crabb (born March 17, 1939) is a senior United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin.

Barbara Brandriff Crabb
Senior Judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin
Assumed office
March 24, 2010
Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin
In office
2001–2010
Preceded byJohn C. Shabaz
Succeeded byWilliam M. Conley
In office
1980–1996
Preceded byJames Edward Doyle
Succeeded byJohn C. Shabaz
Judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin
In office
November 2, 1979 – March 24, 2010
Appointed byJimmy Carter
Preceded bySeat established by 92 Stat. 1629
Succeeded byWilliam M. Conley
Magistrate Judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin
In office
1971–1979
Personal details
Born (1939-03-17) March 17, 1939
Green Bay, Wisconsin, U.S.
EducationUniversity of Wisconsin-Madison (BA, LLB)

Education and career

Born in Green Bay, Wisconsin, Crabb received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1960 and a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Wisconsin Law School in 1962. She was in private practice in Madison, Wisconsin from 1962 to 1968. She was a research assistant to George Bunn of the University of Wisconsin Law School from 1968 to 1969, and for the American Bar Association Project on Minimum Standards of Criminal Justice from 1970 to 1971. She served as a United States magistrate judge for the Western District of Wisconsin from 1971 to 1979.[1]

Federal judicial service

On July 21, 1979, Crabb was nominated by President Jimmy Carter to a new seat on the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin created by 92 Stat. 1629. She was confirmed by the United States Senate on October 31, 1979, and received her commission on November 2, 1979. She served as Chief Judge from 1980 to 1996 and again from 2001 to 2010. On March 24, 2010, Crabb took senior status when her successor, Judge William M. Conley, was confirmed as federal judge.[1]

Notable rulings

In 2010, Crabb ruled in a suit that the Freedom From Religion Foundation filed in 2008 against the Obama administration that the National Day of Prayer is unconstitutional.[2] This ruling was reversed by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in 2011, which found that the plaintiffs in the suit lacked standing to sue.[3][4]

In 2013, Crabb ruled in another suit, Freedom from Religion Foundation v. Lew, that the Internal Revenue Code's "clergy housing allowance exclusion" or "parsonage exemption" (providing that clergy members' housing allowance were exempt from federal income tax) was unconstitutional; the Seventh Circuit vacated this ruling, finding that plaintiffs lacked standing.[5][6]

In 2014, Crabb ruled in the case Wolf v. Walker that Wisconsin's ban on same-sex marriage (in its state constitution and statutes) was an unconstitutional violation of due process and equal protection.[7][8] This ruling was affirmed by the Seventh Circuit.[9]

In 2016, Crabb joined Circuit Judge Kenneth Francis Ripple in finding that the high number of wasted votes created by the 2011 Wisconsin State Assembly redistricting was unconstitutional partisan gerrymandering, over dissent by District Judge William C. Griesbach.[10] The opinion was vacated and remanded by the United States Supreme Court on June 18, 2018.[11]

See also

References
  1. Barbara Brandriff Crabb at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
  2. "Federal Judge Rules Day of Prayer Unconstitutional". Fox News. 2010-04-15. Retrieved 2013-08-15.
  3. Legal challenge to National Day of Prayer thrown out, The Christian Science Monitor
  4. Court Dismisses Challenge to National Day of Prayer, USA Today
  5. Doug Erickson (2013-11-23). "Judge strikes down law that gives clergy members tax-free housing allowances". Wisconsin State Journal. Retrieved 2013-11-02.
  6. Freedom From Religion Found., Inc. v. Lew, 983 F. Supp. 2d 1051 (W.D. Wis. 2013), vacated, 773 F.3d 815 (7th Cir. 2014).
  7. "Court overturns same-sex marriage ban". WISC-TV. 2014-06-06. Archived from the original on 2014-06-06. Retrieved 2014-06-06.
  8. Johnson, M.L. (June 7, 2014). "Gay couples rush to marry at Wisconsin courthouses". Associated Press. Retrieved June 7, 2014.
  9. "Wolf v. Walker - 7th Circuit Court Opinion Affirming District Court Ruling". American Civil Liberties Union. Retrieved Oct 17, 2019.
  10. Michael Wines (22 November 2016). "Judges Find Wisconsin Redistricting Unfairly Favored Republicans". The New York Times. p. A1. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
  11. de Vogue, Ariane (June 18, 2018). "Supreme Court sidesteps partisan gerrymandering cases, let maps stand for now". CNN. Retrieved June 18, 2018.
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