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Janice Rogers Brown

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Janice Brown
Image of Janice Brown

Nonpartisan

Prior offices
United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit

Education

Bachelor's

California State University, 1974

Graduate

University of Virginia School of Law, 2004

Law

UCLA School of Law, 1977

Personal
Birthplace
Greenville, Ala.

Janice Rogers Brown was a federal judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. She joined the court in 2005 after being nominated by President George W. Bush. Judge Brown retired from federal judicial service on August 31, 2017.[1]

Brown was included in a list of 18 potential Supreme Court nominees released by 2020 Libertarian Party presidential nominee Jo Jorgensen.[2]

Early life and education

Born in Greenville, Alabama, Brown graduated from California State University with her bachelor's degree in 1974, from the UCLA School of Law with her J.D. in 1977, and from the University of Virginia School of Law with her LL.M. in 2004.[3]

Professional career

Judicial nominations and appointments

District of Columbia Circuit

Nomination Tracker
Fedbadgesmall.png
Nominee Information
Name: Janice R. Brown
Court: United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
Progress
Confirmed 684 days after nomination.
ApprovedANominated: July 25, 2003
ApprovedAABA Rating: Majority Qualified, Minority Not Qualified
Questionnaire:
ApprovedAHearing: October 22, 2003
Hearing Transcript: Hearing Transcript
QFRs: (Hover over QFRs to read more)
ApprovedAReported: April 21, 2005 November 6, 2003
ApprovedAConfirmed: June 8, 2005
ApprovedAVote: 56-43
DefeatedAReturned: December 8, 2004

Brown was first nominated to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit by President George W. Bush on July 25, 2003, to a seat vacated by Stephen F. Williams. The American Bar Association rated Brown Majority Qualified, Minority Not Qualified for the nomination. Hearings on Brown's nomination were held before the Senate Judiciary Committee on October 22, 2003, and her nomination was reported by U.S. Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) on November 6, 2003. Under provisions of Rule XXXI, paragraph six of the standing rules of the Senate, Brown's nomination was returned to the president on December 8, 2004, in advance of the sine die adjournment of the 108th United States Congress. President Bush resubmitted Brown's nomination on February 14, 2005, and her nomination was reported by U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) on April 21, 2005, without additional hearings. Brown was confirmed on a recorded 56-43 vote of the U.S. Senate on June 8, 2005, and she received her commission on June 10, 2005. Judge Brown retired from judicial service on August 31, 2017.[3][4][5][6]

Retirement announcement

On July 10, 2017, the D.C. Circuit announced that Brown would retire from federal judicial service. The press release attending the announcement stated,[1]

“

U.S. Circuit Judge Janice Rogers Brown of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has notified officials she will retire from the bench effective August 31, 2017. She will not take senior status. Judge Brown has served on the Court since 2005. [7]

”

Noteworthy cases

D.C. police lacked probable cause for arrest, denied immunity (2014)
See also: D.C. Circuit (Theodore Wesby et al. v. District of Columbia et al., Nos. 12-7127)

On March 16, 2008, police in Washington, D.C., were notified of potentially illegal activities taking place at a house party. Officers conducted an investigation and determined that while the attendees were invited to the house by an individual who claimed she had a lease agreement with the homeowner, police discovered that the party attendees did not have the permission of the legal homeowner to be in the home. The police arrested the attendees for unlawful entry, but those charges were later changed to disorderly conduct after a police supervisor consulted with the District of Columbia attorney general's office. The police on scene later testified that they did not witness behavior sufficient to justify a disorderly conduct charge. 16 attendees at the party that were arrested brought suit in federal district court against the District of Columbia (District) and the officers for false arrest and negligent supervision. The court granted summary judgment in part as to the District's and the officers' liability, ruling in favor of the plaintiffs on the false arrest and negligent supervision charges. The district court ordered civil awards between $35,000 and $50,000 for each attendee in the suit.

On appeal, a divided three-judge circuit panel consisting of Judges Cornelia T. L. Pillard, Janice Rogers Brown, and Harry Edwards upheld the district court's judgment. Writing for herself and Judge Edwards, Judge Pillard rejected the District's and officers' argument that the officers had probable cause to arrest the attendees for unlawful entry and disorderly conduct, holding that the officers lacked an objective basis to establish probable cause for either charge. Judge Pillard further rejected the officers' claim that they were entitled to qualified immunity on both the unlawful entry and disorderly conduct charges. The court also affirmed the district court's grant of summary judgment against the District for negligent supervision, asserting that "the undisputed facts in this case demonstrate that ... one of the District’s supervisory officials, directed his subordinates to make an arrest that he should have known was unsupported by probable cause. That is sufficient to entitle the Plaintiffs to judgment as a matter of law on their negligent supervision claim."

Writing for herself, Judge Brown rejected what she claimed was "the impossible standard for finding probable cause the court now proposes. ... Today's decision undercuts the ability of officers to arrest suspects in the absence of direct, affirmative proof that must exceed a nebulous but heightened sufficiency burden that the Court declines to specify. ... Such a heightened threshold is not called for under our precedents."

The District appealed the D.C. Circuit's ruling and the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear the case during the court's 2017 term.[8][9]

See also

External links


Footnotes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, "News release: Judge Janice Rogers Brown announces retirement," July 10, 2017
  2. ↑ Jorgensen 2020, "Jorgensen issues list of potential U.S. Supreme Court picks," September 23, 2020
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Federal Judicial Center, "Biography of Judge Janice Rogers Brown," accessed July 11, 2017
  4. ↑ United States Congress, "PN 839 — Janice R. Brown — The Judiciary," accessed July 11, 2017
  5. ↑ United States Congress, "PN 201 — Janice R. Brown — The Judiciary," accessed July 11, 2017
  6. ↑ American Bar Association, "Ratings of Article III judicial nominees, 108th Congress," accessed July 11, 2017
  7. ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
  8. ↑ U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, Theodore Wesby et al. v. District of Columbia et al. September 2, 2014
  9. ↑ Supreme Court of the United States, District of Columbia v. Wesby, January 19, 2017
Political offices
Preceded by:
Stephen F. Williams 		D.C. Circuit Court
2005-2017 		Succeeded by:
Greg Katsas




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