Barbara Crabb
| Barbara Crabb | |
 | |
| Current Court Information: | |
| United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin | |
| Title: | Senior Judge |
| Position: | Seat #2 |
| Service: | |
| Appointed by: | Jimmy Carter |
| Active: | 11/2/1979 - 3/24/2010 |
| Chief: | 1980 - 1996 ; 2001 - 2010 |
| Senior: | 3/24/2010 - Present |
| Preceded by: | 92 Stat. 1629 |
| Succeeded by: | William Conley |
| Past post: | U.S. Magistrate |
| Past term: | 1971 - 1979 |
| Personal History | |
| Born: | 1939 |
| Home State: | Green Bay, WI |
| Bachelors: | U. of Wisconsin, Madison, B.A., 1960 |
| Law School: | U. of Wisconsin Law School, LL.B., 1962 |
Contents |
Barbara Brandriff Crabb is a federal district court (Article III) judge in the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin. She joined the court in 1979 after being nominated by President Jimmy Carter. She served the court as chief judge from 1980-1996. On December 31, 2009, Crabb assumed senior status. [1][2]
Early life and education
Born in Green Bay, Crabb graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with her Bachelor's Degree in 1960 and her Law Degree in 1962.
Professional career
After graduation from law school, Crabb entered into private practice in Madison from 1962 to 1968 then from 1968 to 1971 Crabb worked as a Research assistant for professor George Bunn at the University of Wisconsin Law School from 1968-1969 and as a Research assistant for the American Bar Association's Project on Minimum Standards of Criminal Justice from 1970 to 1971. [2]
Judicial career
Western District of Wisconsin
Crabb was recommended by former Senator Wiliam Proxmire to be nominated by President Jimmy Carter on July 21, 1979, to a new seat created by 92 Stat. 1629. Crabb was confirmed by the Senate on October 31, 1979, and received her commission for the Western District of Wisconsin on November 2, 1979. Crabb served as the chief judge from 1980 to 1996. Crabb also served as U.S. Magistrate judge for the Western District of Wisconsin from 1971 to 1979. [2]
Unexpected Senior Status announcement
On March 20, 2009, Judge Crabb unexpectedly announced her intention to take on senior status.
In her release issued to the Wisconsin media, Crabb stated:
"Over the past several years, this court’s ever-expanding and increasingly complex caseload has required extraordinary efforts from all of the judges and court staff in order to provide the prompt resolution of cases that all litigants have a right to expect. All indicators suggest that this trend will continue unabated.
"One solution would be to ask Congress to authorize a third judgeship for this court, but this would be a time-consuming and expensive proposition. A more cost-effective and immediate solution would be for me to take senior status. This would allow me to continue my work for the court at a less frenetic pace while opening a full-time position for another federal judge. Given the nation’s current economic straits and the immediate needs of this court, I have decided after considerable reflection that this is the best course for all concerned. Therefore, I have written President Obama to report my intention to take senior status as soon as my successor can be appointed."[3]
Notable cases
The notable case section on this page needs to be reformatted.
National Day of Prayer
Judge Crabb ruled on April 15, 2010 that the "National Day of Prayer", which was established by Congress in 1952, was unconstitutional. The Madison, Wisconsin based Freedom from Religion Foundation filed the lawsuit against both the Obama and Bush administrations in order to block the Presidents from making an annual proclamation customary of the event. The decision will not affect President Barack Obama from making a proclamation for the 2010 National Day of Prayer.
The United States Department of Justice, which represented the defendants, will review the ruling before pursuing an appeal to the Chicago-based Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals[4].
Members of the Congressional Prayer Caucus have been critical of Judge Crabb's ruling and planned a news conference for April 21, 2010 to denounce her ruling. The injunction, however, does not take effect until the legal counsel representing the White House have exhausted all their appeals, a process which could take years[5].
The U.S. Department of Justice announced on April 22, 2010, that they will plan to appeal the case to the Seventh Circuit. No date for oral arguments have been set[6].
- CLICK HERE for a copy of the official ruling.
Judicial Speech Rights
Barbara Crabb ruled in the case of Siefert v. Alexander, et al., 3:08-cv-126 in which Milwaukee County Circuit Court judge John Siefert had sought the right to join the Democratic party, endorse then Presidential candidate Barack Obama, and personally solicit campaign contributions[7].
Each of these activities, however, was prohibited by the Wisconsin Code of Judicial Conduct. In March of 2008, Siefert brought suit to the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin suing all the current sitting members of the Wisconsin Judicial Commission arguing that the restrictions violated his First Amendment rights on the basis of free speech[7].
On February 18, 2009, Judge Crabb issued her ruling using the similar ruling in Republican Party of Minnesota v. White that the Wisconsin Judicial Commission's stance on the code of judicial conduct violates the first amendment by restricting speech. This ruling could help pave the way for partisan judicial elections in Wisconsin[7].
- CLICK HERE for a copy of the judge's official ruling.
See also
External links
References
- ↑ Future Vacancies in the Federal Judiciary
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Biography of Barbara Crabb from the Federal Judicial Center.
- ↑ "WISPolitics" Judge Crabb resigns, March 20, 2009
- ↑ Milwaukee Journal Sentinel "Wisconsin federal judge rules against National Day of Prayer" April 16, 2010
- ↑ CNN "Congressional group to support Day of Prayer", April 21, 2010
- ↑ Christian Century "Appeal planned after National Day of Prayer is ruled unconstitutional", May 18, 2010
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 "James Madison Center", Order of Siefert v. Alexander, February 17, 2009
| Federal judicial offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by: NA-New Seat |
Western District of Wisconsin 1979–2010 Seat #2 |
Succeeded by: William Conley |
| |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Active judges | |||
| Senior judges |
Barbara Crabb • | ||
| Magistrate judges | Stephen Crocker • Peter Oppeneer • | ||
| Former Article III judges |
John Shabaz • James Campbell Hopkins • Romanzo Bunn • Arthur Loomis Sanborn • Claude Zeth Luse • Patrick Thomas Stone • James Edward Doyle • David Rabinovitz • | ||
| Former Chief judges |
John Shabaz • Barbara Crabb • James Edward Doyle • | ||
