} A man who spent nearly three decades in prison after being wrongly convicted of rape and assault is marrying a federal judge who is the sister of Stacey Abrams, the first-ever black female nominee for governor in the United States. And the 54-year-old is on track to earn his bachelors degree with honors this fall from Chapman University. font-weight: bold; } Im very familiar with laws, and I got talking with Leslie; we were discussing for hours about judicial laws and different processes.. She also has experience working at the Supreme Court as a clerk to former Justice John Paul Stevens. Click here to contact our editorial staff, and click here to report an error. Between seasons, he enrolled in his first college classes, imagining the day when hed walk across a stage, flip his tassel, and take home a degree in business management. background-color: white; Both women described their assaulters as a light-skinned black man with a narrow nose who was about 6 feet tall. font-weight: bold; She was also a law firm partner, focusing on labor and employment law. font-size: 1.2em; margin: auto; He died while awaiting trial. She graduated from Brown University and Yale Law School and, as a private attorney, represented big corporations including Alphabet Inc.s Google and Bank of America Corp. Some other possible front-runners include 45-year-old California Supreme Court Justice Leondra Kruger and Georgia U.S. District Court Judge Leslie Abrams Gardner, who is 47 and the sister of Stacey Abrams, who is running for governor in Georgia. Her age -- she is the youngest of Bidens potential picks -- means she could easily serve for three decades or more on the high court. I still haven't found a case like mine to this day,' he said. 'I've seen 18-year-olds come in and get a hit put on them and get killed. Dan Mac Guill is a former writer for Snopes. Ruckman even identified another man out of a police lineup as the man who assaulted her, but Zain said that his DNA evidence excluded that man. [3], Gardner earned her B.A. | Leslie Abrams Gardner is a federal judge for the United States District Court for the Middle District of Georgia. We are no longer accepting comments on this article. She would be the youngest Supreme Court nominee since 43-year-old Thomas was selected in 1991. padding-left: 10px; In May 1987, a mother and her daughter were robbed, beaten, and the latter raped at their home in Charleston. font-weight: bold; Many felt it was inappropriate for Gardner to rule on the case, a concern that was On Monday, November 17, 2014 cloture was invoked by a 6828 vote. School districts | She was appointed by former California Governor Jerry Brown and is the second-ever Black woman on that states Supreme Court. She has written about the importance of diversity among judges in federal and state courts. That chatter gained volume last year when Biden tapped her to fill now-Attorney General Merrick Garlands seat on the D.C. Gardner is the daughter of the Reverend Carolyn and the Reverend Robert Abrams, originally of Hattiesburg, Mississippi. https://t.co/i6Ny4eub0z Her sister Stacey Abrams is the former House Minority Leader in the Georgia General Assembly, and the Democratic nominee for governor in the 2018 Georgia gubernatorial election[2][3] and 2022 Georgia gubernatorial election. } On the nomination: Abrams was rated Majority Qualified, Minority Not Qualified by the American Bar Association. Instead of getting offended, Gardner said Leslie Abrams told him, Wow, you could actually be an attorney. She hesitated to tell him her job, he said, fearing his experience with the justice system would put him off. He's still a friend today. Ifill, 59, came back to helm the LDF in 2013 after two decades teaching at the University of Maryland School of Law in Baltimore. In a footnote to her Dec. 28 ruling, Abrams Gardner noted the request for her to recuse herself, but stated simply, "The Court has reviewed the motion and finds no basis for recusal." Jimmie Gardner was wrongfully convicted of assault and rape nearly three decades after an investigator produced falsified evidence by the way of fingerprint and DNA sample results that were not Jimmie's. The former minor league baseball player spent the better part of 23 years fruitlessly . In her most prominent case, she ruled in 2019 that former White House counsel Don McGahn had to testify at a House impeachment hearing. Justice Leslie Abrams Gardner, a federal prosecutor turned federal district court judge, has had her name . Justice Leslie Abrams Gardner is speculated to be on President Biden's shortlist for the nation's . I had fingerprints, photos, stayed 90 minutes to be interrogated, they said nothing matched, and wished me well for the season. 'In the beginning she wouldn't give me a key and took the door off my room, saying: 'I don't want you bringing girls into the house'. Gardner attended the event. Another name that stands out is Ketanji Brown Jackson, 49, a judge in Washington who was . Read More: A Supreme Court Path for Potential Black Female Nominee. But no one's story can be quite as astonishing as Gardner's. Black Women Had Some Major Firsts In Last Week's Midterm Elections, Black Musicians Are Not A Monolith: An Interview with Bartees Strange, Stacey Abrams: Here's How Voter Suppression Can Occur. I just try to be a good person, I try to treat people with respect.'. Leslie Abrams Gardner, U.S. District Court, Middle District, Georgia President Barack Obama nominated Gardner in 2014, and she was approved unanimously by the Senate. She is a former professor who spent 20 years at the University of Maryland School of Law in Baltimore. On March 11, 2014, President Barack Obama nominated Abrams to the United States District Court for the Middle District of Georgia. } In addition to working in the appeals unit of Washington, D.C.s federal public defender office, she served on the U.S. sentencing commission and worked for multiple large law firms. On Dec. 23, Majority Forward challenged the actions of Muscogee and Ben Hill counties, and filed for a temporary restraining order on Dec. 27. Ifill has also been a frequent presence on cable news and in op-ed pages, particularly on issues surrounding voting rights and the crimin system. I'm then immediately arrested and charged with nine counts from two separate offenses.'. A judge determined that Zains pattern and practice of misconduct completely undermined the validity and reliability of any forensic work he performed or reported.. Cochran was in prison for gang-related offenses and was part of the Aryan Brotherhood, a neo-Nazi white supremacist group. Judge Leslie Abrams Gardner blocked two counties from purging over 4,000 voters from the rolls for Georgia's upcoming runoff elections. United States District Court for the Middle District of Georgia, .infobox { [1] Biography [ edit] Over the years, Abrams has repeatedly confirmed as much, including when she congratulated Abrams Gardner on her U.S. Senate confirmation and appointment as U.S. District Court judge for the Middle District of Georgia, in 2014 and 2015. 'The following Friday, I got the call from my lawyer telling me that my conviction had been vacated and Goodwin had given me an automatic release. color: black; Prior to that she was a state court trial judge after previously serving as a commissioner on the South Carolina Workers Compensation Commission and a deputy director at the state Department of Labor. from Brown University in 1997 and her J.D. The case involving Abrams and Fair Fight was overseen by a different judge in a different court. width: 57%; Police interviewed all of the black players on the Charleston Wheelers, including Gardner, as part of their investigation. I have a pretty unrelenting view of justice, she said in a 2013 interview with NYU Law Magazine. Zain was fired in 1993 and indicted for fraud, according to the National Registry of Exonerations at the University of Michigan. A feud could start out of nowhere. It was Leslie Abrams Gardner who introduced her husband to Chapman University. float: right; But it would take 23 years for Gardner to finally be released, being denied hearing after hearing, and he spent years writing to advocacy groups and even President Barack Obama looking for help. Gardner recalled: 'My mother told me on a Sunday that she'd gone out to pray and God had said that you can pack up and you're coming home. Snopes and the Snopes.com logo are registered service marks of Snopes.com. Sentencing Commission for several years as its vice chair. 2022 Bloomberg L.P. All rights reserved. } That court is regarded as the second-most influential federal court, behind only the Supreme Court. But while the federal judge had vacated his convictions, West Virginia opted to retry Gardner on all charges. Also, genetic markers did not in fact rule out the other suspect. Earlier in December 2020, Tommy Roberts a City Council member in Fitzgerald in Ben Hill County challenged the eligibility of 328 registered voters in the county. [9][10] Click here to read more about the vacancy and nomination process. Ballot measures, Who represents me? .widget-row.value-only.white { Six months later, as university President Daniele Struppa committed to new diversity initiatives aimed at better supporting students of color on campus in the wake of George Floyds death, Gardner was invited to share his experience during a virtual town hall. Attorney Admissions; Bill of Costs Guide; CJA Attorney Information; CJA eVoucher . Ketanji Brown Jackson is sworn in at her confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Biden could also heed calls from his liberal base to add professional diversity to a court without any former public defenders or civil rights lawyers. For Stacey Abrams sister to refuse to recuse and issue this decision despite her indisputable bias undermines the integrity of the entire judicial system." On Dec. 28, Abrams Gardner granted that order, meaning the counties were ordered, for the next eight days, not to remove the targeted voters from registration lists, or require them to cast only provisional ballots. 'Leslie is brilliant, and that's an understatement,' said Gardner, who added that professionally and at home, everyone has accepted his and Leslie's relationship. Gardner was 20 years old, pitching for the Charleston Wheelers in West Virginia in 1987. Before becoming a federal judge, Childs was a South Carolina state judge, a commissioner on the state workers compensation commission, and an official in the South Carolina labor department. width: 250px; [6] On February 15, Biden announced he would nominate Ketanji Brown Jackson. During the retirement announcement, Biden said that: "The person I will nominate will be someone of extraordinary qualifications, character, experience and integrity. She can go on to the be the first black female governor in the United States.'. margin-top: 1px; In December 2020, right-leaning observers and prominent Republican politicians cried foul after a federal court judge blocked attempts to remove thousands of names from voter rolls in Georgia, ahead of January's two U.S. Senate run-off elections in the state. The conversation flowered into a romantic relationship, and the two are engaged to be married later this year. padding-left: 10px; He also formed the nonprofit Gardner House to help get people out of prison and transition back into society. Apply today! She is also a former assistant federal public defender in D.C. and clerked for several jurists including Breyer. Hes married to a high-profile woman whos become his biggest supporter. Since 2015, Leondra Kruger has served as an associate justice on the California Supreme Court. Even though he knew of this discovery, Gardner would spend another 23 years in prison. .top_disclaimer { But the Abrams aren't the only high-profile names Gardner has mingled with since his release - through his work he's also met Amanda Knox and John Lewis. 'I came home after 27 years, you don't have to be angry all the time, keep in good health, mentally, physically and spiritually. While working alongside schools and prisons in Georgia, he met his future wife Leslie at a gathering of black female judges. Childs, 55, may have been considered a long shot given that no federal district judge has been directly elevated to the Supreme Court since 1923. Black News and Black Views with a Whole Lotta Attitude. .widget-row.Independent, .widget-row.Nonpartisan, .widget-row.Constitution { Abrams is the leader of Fair Fight Action, . 'But no one took on the case. Prior to being appointed to the bench, she was an Assistant United States Attorney.[1]. His team spent the next five months preparing. He was questioned, fingerprinted and released. Former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams and Leslie Abrams Gardner are indeed sisters. color: white; The D.C. During Jacksons district court confirmation hearing, Breyer was quoted as having raved about her intellect and thoughtfulness. In reality, Abrams was not a party to the case on which her sister ruled in December 2020. Growing up in Tampa Bay, Florida, he was a natural at sports, from football to basketball, but it was baseball that was destined to be his future. Farm Heroes Saga, the #4 Game on iTunes. They argued, in part, that Fair Fight the voting rights group founded and chaired by Abrams was involved in similar litigation before the U.S. District Court in Georgia's Northern District, and the same lawyers represented Fair Fight and Majority Forward in the cases. Two years later, in Miami, Gardner was arrested for gun possession and the police ran his fingerprints through the system. width: 43%; They also argued that Abrams Gardner's ruling in the Majority Forward case could have a bearing on the judge's decision-making in the Fair Fight litigation, which directly involved Abrams, since she is the chairperson of that organization. 'She's the perfect person to provide energy for the state of Georgia. Collins stated a significant falsehood in claiming otherwise. Theres a moment Jimmie Gardner has rehearsed in his head for more than three decades. Clay LandTilman E. Self IIILeslie Abrams Gardner, Hugh LawsonWillie SandsAshley Royal, Duross FitzpatrickWilbur OwensBascom Sine DeaverWilliam Josiah TilsonWilliam BootleAbraham CongerThomas Davis (Georgia)James Robert Elliott, Hugh LawsonDuross FitzpatrickWilbur OwensWillie SandsClay LandWilliam BootleThomas Davis (Georgia)James Robert Elliott, What's on my ballot? display: inline-block; The federal judge denied Gardners initial petition but assigned him a federal defender and agreed to let them present his case in court. Jackson, who grew up in Miami, graduated from Harvard College and Harvard Law School and clerked for two lower court judges before working for Breyer during the Supreme Courts 1999-2000 term. The legal wranglings were complex but the gist was simple: While he didnt actually look like the suspect, he fit the vague description of a tall black male. She also spent several years working in the private sector, mostly for the firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, and was a federal law clerk in Maryland early in her career. She also has an influential backer in Representative Jim Clyburn, the South Carolina Democrat whose endorsement of Biden in the 2020 presidential primary helped rescue his flailing campaign. Many felt it was inappropriate for Gardner to rule on the case, a concern that was Here are some of the people whose names have been discussed as prime candidates for an open Supreme Court seat. According to Abrams Gardner's Dec. 28 ruling, the basic facts of the case were as follows. | Jimmie Gardner was released from a West Virginia prison in 2016, 26 years after being wrongly convicted of sexual assault, robbery and unlawful entry related to break-ins that occurred in the 1980s. On May 16, 1987, a man described as around 6 feet tall with light black skin broke into an 82-year-old Charleston womans home. --With assistance from Jordan Rubin and Ellen Gilmer. He was in solitary confinement, meaning he spent 23 hours in his cell. word-wrap: break-word; Clyburn told the New York Times in February Childs would be a good addition to the Supreme Court.. [12] The vacancy was created when Willie Sands took senior status on April 12, 2014. Leslie Abrams Gardner. U.S. District Judge Leslie Abrams Gardner's ruling comes after two counties voted to remove a tranche of voters' names from their rosters after two separate complaints alleged that publicly . She received her bachelors degree from the University of South Florida and received both a business and law degree from the University of South Carolina. margin-bottom:0px; 'It's a strong testament to be just yourself with people. She studied at Vassar College and earned her law degree from New York University. from Yale University School of Law in 2002. } These dupes are the price of the iconic sweater, but still as sleek as a slicked-back bun and hoops. Gardner, 47, is another judge who would be making an unlikely leap from serving on a federal district court. Zains testimony was used to convict an estimated 136 people in the 1970s and 80s, Gardner later learned. Prior to her confirmation last summer, Jackson served as a federal district court judge from 2013 through 2021. [15] The Senate Judiciary Committee reported Abrams to the full Senate on June 19, 2014, on a voice vote. However her prospects are complicated by being the sister of Democratic voting rights activist and Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams. 'I was stuck for 23 years in state court. The bulk of the registrations that the counties sought to rescind, more than 4,000, were in Muscogee County, which Biden won handily in November. color: white; A guide to ALL of the characters in Daisy Jones & The Six - from Joan Jett-esque rock icon to the Steve Nicks-inspired leading lady played by Elvis' granddaughter Riley Keough - who based her portrayal on late mom Lisa Marie, PICTURED: Radio host who took down Subway spokesman Jared Fogle with flirty, long-distance relationship to record him describing sick pedo fantasies - only for it to ruin her life, Florida Wheel of Fortune contestant sparks hilarity after getting answer wrong to food puzzle with letters: 'WARM TOASTED BA_ELS WITH LO_ AND CREAM CHEESE', Not very reserved! Jimmie and Leslie Gardner met and were married after his release. Kevin Lamarque/Reuters/Bloomberg via Getty Images, Photographer: Tom Williams/Pool/Getty Images, Photographer: S. Todd Rogers/The Recorder/AP Photo, Photographer: Matt McClain/The Washington Post/Getty Images, President has pledged to nominate first Black female justice, Progressives want more professional diversity on court. } Now the 51-year-old has found love with Georgia District Judge Leslie Abrams (left), Leslie, 43, is the sister of Stacey Abrams (pictured), who became the first black female governor nominee ever in the United States when she won the Democratic primary in Georgia on Tuesday. Whether that connection, in combination with her familial relationship with Abrams Gardner, should constitute grounds for recusal, is ultimately a matter of subjective interpretation. 'We need a fresh beginning. }, Chief Judge:Marc Thomas Treadwell Leslie Joyce Abrams has had a distinguished legal career and I am honored to ask her to continue her public service on the federal bench. Today, Gardner is getting ready to celebrate his fifth anniversary of being released from prison and cleared of all charges. Whatever was offered, I took it. Circuit served as a springboard for future justices, including Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Clarence Thomas and Brett Kavanaugh. The judge released him April 1, 2016 on a $10,000 bond. Gardner spent the next 27 years in the West Virginia prison system fighting for his freedom. 'If you've been wrongfully convicted, then keep on fighting, don't give up, and if you're in rightfully, and been given too much time - which the majority have - then also don't give up. But West Virginias chief blood analyst at the time, Fred Zain, said evidence from both sexual assaults suggested Gardner couldnt be ruled out as a suspect. But the story of Leslies fiance, Jimmie Gardner, is as extraordinary as that of his soon-to-be family members. He is also involved in the Innocence Project, an organization that takes on cases in hopes of freeing people who have been wrongly convicted. Gardner, who has not received compensation from West Virginia for the false imprisonment, jumped right into his new life and forged a career as a motivational speaker and an advocate for the wrongly convicted. font-size: .9em; background-color: #f9f9f9; .widget-row { During his trial, both victims said that Gardner was not the man who raped them. 'She's very experienced - numerous years in political spectrum,' Gardner said. Play it now! 'I was the only male there, I went with a friend who asked me to mingle,' Gardner said. 'I met a lot of her judge friends, and they were honored to meet me, as I was them,' he added. U.S. District Judge Leslie Abrams Gardner A federal judge on Monday evening sided with a voting rights organization seeking to prevent two counties from purging thousands of "targeted voters" from their voting rolls less than two weeks ahead of the state's highly consequential Senate runoff elections. Its funny because I was explaining to her how the law worked in my case, Gardner says. The defendants in the case filed a motion to request that Abrams Gardner recuse herself. Every opportunity I had to take a class or learn a vocation, I took advantage of it, Gardner said. } He agreed there had been a miscarriage of justice, but it still took 46 months before Gardner was released, and the state wasn't willing to give in, and wanted a retrial, even offering him ten years if he admitted his guilt. During her tenure she argued a dozen cases before the Supreme Court on behalf of the government, according to her state supreme court bio. U.S. District Judge Leslie Abrams Gardner's ruling Wednesday came amid efforts by the Texas-based conservative group True The Vote to coordinate challenges to the registration of more than . But he never got the chance,' Gardner said. Leslie Abrams Gardner. Before being appointed to the bench, Jackson worked as an attorney at the firm Morrison & Foerster with an emphasis on appellate litigation. She has also been involved in recent efforts to push Facebook Inc. and other social media platforms to do more to combat racism and voter suppression on their sites. From 2010 to 2014, she served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Northern District of Georgia. He was drafted by the Chicago Cubs and played for a West Virginia farm team, the Charleston Wheelers, in the Minor League. Court Personnel Leslie Abrams Gardner, U.S. District Judge Staff Information Felicia Rushing, Courtroom Deputy/Scheduling Clerk, felicia_rushing@gamd.uscourts.gov, (229) 431-2510 Chambers of Judge Leslie Abrams Gardner 201 West Broad Avenue Albany, Georgia 31701 Trial Trial: Judge Gardner's Voir Dire Questions - Civil Trials Police believed the two crimes were linked, so they questioned more than 100 tall black men in the area. Kruger has held several high-ranking posts at the Department of Justice, Part of the Daily Mail, The Mail on Sunday & Metro Media Group, Double murderer Alex Murdaugh is heckled about surviving son Buster as he leaves court to begin life sentence without parole: Judge tells him Maggie and Paul will 'visit you in your sleep' - as his lawyers plan appeal in ten days, Don Jr. calls Fetterman a 'vegetable' who should be a 'bag guy at a grocery store' NOT a Senator - after he was admitted to Walter Reed with clinical depression, Would YOU move to another state if you were paid? font-weight: bold; A century and a decade. In Muscogee County, a man named Ralph Russell brought a similar challenge, claiming to have found 4,033 registered voters in Muscogee County who, according to the National Change of Address database, had moved out of state. Despite the fact that Gardner is 6 feet 4, has a wide nose and is dark-skinned, Fred Zain, who examined blood for the West Virginia State Police, said that Gardners blood and fingerprints matched the blood and fingerprints that were found at the scene of the crime. Click here to contact us for media inquiries, and please donate here to support our continued expansion. In late December Biden nominated her for a spot on the D.C. Ts there were no ruling, I couldn't take it to federal court. The defendants wrote: In addition, any relief rendered in the instant case as it relates to the NCOAR [National Change of Address Registry] would likely be cited as persuasive authority in the Fair Fight Litigation. She is also a former assistant federal public defender in D.C. and clerked for several jurists including Breyer.
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