Marian Gaston

Marian FitzGerald Gaston (born 1971)[3] is an American lawyer who has served as a judge of the San Diego County Superior Court in California since 2015. She is a nominee to serve as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of California.

Marian Gaston
Judge of the San Diego County Superior Court
Assumed office
March 27, 2015
Appointed byJerry Brown
Personal details
Born
Marian Fitzgerald[1]

1971 (age 51–52)
Mobile, Alabama, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic[2]
EducationEmory University (BA)
University of California, Berkeley (JD)

Education

Gaston received a Bachelor of Arts from Emory University in 1993 and a Juris Doctor from UC Berkeley School of Law in 1996.[4]

Career

From 1996 to 2015, Gaston served as a deputy public defender in the San Diego County Public Defender's office.[4] On March 27, 2015, California Governor Jerry Brown appointed her as a judge of the San Diego County Superior Court.[2] Gaston works in the collaborative courts program which includes specialized courts such as drug court, veterans treatment court, and behavioral health court that provide treatment and supervision for qualified individuals instead of incarceration.[5] Since 2006, she has been a faculty member with the National Institute for Trial Advocacy. From 2004 to 2009, she was an adjunct professor at California Western School of Law where she taught trial skills classes and coached trial teams. She has taught at the McGeorge School of Law of the University of the Pacific, the Thomas Jefferson School of Law, and the University of California, San Diego.[3]

Notable cases

In 2000, Gaston represented Jason Williams, who pled guilty to a hate crime, attempted arson and other charges stemming from a March 26, 2000, attack on Midell Harper, a neighbor. Gaston said her client was on a drunken binge and had not been motivated by Harper's race. Williams was sentenced to 56 months in prison.[6]

In 2009, Gaston represented Matthew Hedge, a registered sex offender who violated his terms of release as a sexually violent prisoner.[7]

In 2011, Gaston represented Philong Huynh, who was charged with murdering an Orange County resident in the Gaslamp Quarter, targeting young heterosexual men, whom he would drug and sexually assault. Huynh was found guilty and sentenced to life without parole.[8]

Nomination to district court

On December 21, 2022, President Joe Biden announced his intent to nominate Gaston to serve as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of California. Gaston was recommended by Senator Alex Padilla.[9] On January 23, 2023, her nomination was sent to the Senate. President Biden nominated Gaston to the seat vacated by Judge William Q. Hayes, who assumed senior status on August 1, 2021.[10] On February 15, 2023, a hearing on her nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee.[11] A former public defender, Gaston was accused of having a pro-criminal and anti public safety bias who would reflexively favor criminal defendants. A paper she co-authored in 2007 expressed the opinion that registered sex offenders should not be subject to residency restrictions and should be allowed to live near churches, schools, and day care centers.[12] Senator Alex Padilla and other Democrats accused Gaston's critics of misconstruing Gaston's record.[9] On May 11, 2023, her nomination was reported out of committee by an 11–10 vote.[13][9] Her nomination is pending before the United States Senate.

See also

References
  1. "Marian Fitzgerald Gaston (California Superior Court, San Diego County) – CourtListener.com". CourtListener.
  2. "Governor Brown Appoints Two to San Diego County Superior Court". www.ca.gov. March 27, 2015. Retrieved December 21, 2022.
  3. "Questionnaire for Judicial Nominees" (PDF). United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  4. "President Biden Names Twenty-Eighth Round of Judicial Nominees" (Press release). Washington, D.C.: The White House. December 21, 2022. Retrieved December 21, 2022. Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  5. "Biden taps Superior Court Judge Gaston for seat on San Diego federal bench". San Diego Union-Tribune. December 21, 2022.
  6. "Man Gets Prison for Flame Attack". Los Angeles Times. June 29, 2000.
  7. "Report: sexually violent predator admitted violating terms of release". cbs8.com.
  8. "Prosecutor: Accused killer targeted heterosexual men". cbs8.com.
  9. Bendery, Jennifer. "Dianne Feinstein Helps Clear Biden's Stalled Court Picks In Senate Committee". huffpost.com. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  10. "Nominations Sent to the Senate" (Press release). Washington, D.C.: The White House. January 23, 2023.
  11. "Nominations". Washington, D.C.: United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. February 14, 2023.
  12. "First Circuit Nominee Grilled Over Representation of Student in Sexual Assault Dispute".
  13. "Results of Executive Business Meeting – May 11, 2023" (PDF). United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Retrieved May 11, 2023.



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