Kyra Harris Bolden

Kyra Harris Bolden (born July 31, 1988)[1][2][3] is an American judge, politician, and civil litigation attorney. She has served as an associate justice of the Michigan Supreme Court since January 1, 2023. Bolden was a Democratic member of the Michigan House of Representatives for the 35th district from January 1, 2019 to January 1, 2023.

Kyra Harris Bolden
Associate Justice of the Michigan Supreme Court
Assumed office
January 1, 2023
Appointed byGretchen Whitmer
Preceded byBridget Mary McCormack
Member of the Michigan House of Representatives
from the 35th district
In office
January 1, 2019 – January 1, 2023
Preceded byJeremy Moss
Succeeded byAndrew Fink
Personal details
Born (1988-07-31) July 31, 1988
Southfield, Michigan, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseGreg Bolden
Children1
EducationGrand Valley State University (BA)
University of Detroit (JD)
WebsiteCampaign website

She was a candidate for the Michigan Supreme Court in 2022, but came in third behind incumbents Richard Bernstein and Brian Zahra.[4] On November 22, 2022, Bolden was appointed to the Michigan Supreme Court by Governor Gretchen Whitmer to replace Bridget Mary McCormack.[5]

Bolden was a civil litigation attorney.[6] In her bid for re-election in 2020, Bolden faced Democratic primary challenger Shadia Martini. In the primary, Bolden defeated Martini by 20,981 votes. Bolden went on to be re-elected in the 2020 election, defeating Republican challenger Daniela Davis.[7]

Early life and education

Kyra Harris Bolden is an attorney, serving her second term, representing her hometown of Southfield in the Michigan State House. A graduate of Southfield Public Schools, Bolden chose to remain in Michigan for her studies, receiving her bachelor's degree from Grand Valley State University and Juris Doctor from the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law.[8]

Career

While working in Lansing, Bolden advocates for Michiganders as a member of the Judiciary Committee and has focused her work on criminal justice reform, crafting and passing bipartisan legislation to protect survivors of sexual violence. Bolden has passed the “Medically Frail” prison reform package, the revision of the Wrongful Imprisonment Compensation Act, and the “Address Confidentiality for Survivors of Domestic Violence” package.[9][10]

Michigan Supreme Court

On November 22, 2022, Bolden was appointed to the Michigan Supreme Court by Governor Gretchen Whitmer to replace Bridget Mary McCormack.[5] Bolden is the first Black woman to serve on the Michigan Supreme Court.[11] Bolden's qualifications for the Supreme Court were that in addition to serving in the legislature for 4 years, she also handled misdemeanor court appointed cases in the 46th District Court sometime between 2014 and 2018.[12]

Controversies

In 2023, Michigan Supreme Court Justice Richard H. Bernstein drew controversy after Bolden hired Pete Martel, who spent fourteen years in prison for armed robbery before attending Wayne State University Law School, as a law clerk.[13] Bernstein publicly stated that he was "completely disgusted" by Bolden's decision to hire Martel as a law clerk and claimed that he and Justice Bolden "don't share the same values."[13] He also claimed that Bolden's decision to hire Martel would reflect poorly on the entire court and that it was not "fair to the police and the prosecutors" to have a convicted felon working for the court.[14] Bolden confirmed that Martel had resigned from his position as a law clerk due to Bernstein's comments and explained that Martel "did not want to be a distraction or in any way divert the court from its important work."[13] On January 9, 2023 Bernstein issued a statement saying he apologized to Bolden in person at the Hall of Justice and that she accepted his apology.[15]

Affiliations

Bolden has received several awards, including the 2019 Detroit Association of Women's Clubs, Inc. “Young Women Lifting As We Climb Image Award”, 2019 African American Leadership Awards “Emerging Leader Award”, 2020 Michigan Chronicle 40 Under 40 honoree,[16] 2021 Legislative Economic Development Champion Award and the 2021 Michigan Credit Union League “Legislator of the Year” award.

Bolden is a member of the Oakland County Bar Association, Wolverine Bar Association, Straker Bar Association, the Women Lawyers Association of Michigan, National Congress of Black Women-Oakland County, Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority, and as a member of the Total Living Commission for the City of Southfield.[17]

Personal life

Bolden lives in her hometown of Southfield with her husband, Dr. Greg Bolden, and daughter Emerson Portia Bolden.

See also

References
  1. Bolden, Kyra. "Bolden for Justice website". boldenforjustice.com.
  2. "Meet Kyra Harris Bolden". Kyra Harris Bolden. Archived from the original on November 9, 2019. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  3. "Kyra Bolden's Biography". Vote Smart. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  4. "Bernstein, Zahra win Michigan Supreme Court seats". The Detroit News. Retrieved 2022-11-22.
  5. Mauger, Craig. "Gov. Gretchen Whitmer makes historic pick for Michigan Supreme Court vacancy". The Detroit News. Retrieved 2022-11-22.
  6. "Meet Kyra". housedems.com. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  7. "Michigan House of Representatives District 35". Ballotpedia. Retrieved 2020-05-28.
  8. Bolden, Kyra. "Bolden For Justice". Bolden For Justice.
  9. "Gov. Whitmer Signs Bills to Parole Medically Frail Prisoners for Treatment". www.michigan.gov.
  10. "Michigan's Historic Win: What's Next for Kyra Bolden". December 5, 2022.
  11. "Kyra Harris Bolden, great-granddaughter of lynching victim, becomes first Black woman justice on Michigan Supreme Court". CNN. January 2, 2023. Retrieved January 9, 2023.
  12. "Michigan Manual - 2021" (PDF). Michigan Manual, 2021. 2021.
  13. "Ex-convict quits Michigan Supreme Court law clerk job after criticism by justice". Crain's Detroit Business. 2023-01-05. Retrieved 2023-01-07.
  14. Miller, Matthew (2023-01-05). "Michigan Supreme Court justice hires ex-con then accepts his resignation following criticism". mlive. Retrieved 2023-01-07.
  15. "Michigan Supreme Court justice apologizes to fellow justice". FOX 17 West Michigan News (WXMI). January 10, 2023.
  16. "2020 Michigan Chronicle 40 under 40 Awards Honorees Announced". Real Times Media. Michigan Chronicle. October 22, 2020. Retrieved 20 September 2022.
  17. Tucker, Brice (January 21, 2023). "Michigan's first Black Woman Supreme Court Justice speaks at sorority brunch in Flint". mlive.
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